| 1. |
- Bartfai, Aniko, et al.
(författare)
-
Impaired cognitive functioning in stress-induced exhaustion disorder : a new tablet-based assessment
- 2021
-
Ingår i: BMC Psychiatry. - : BioMed Central. - 1471-244X. ; 21:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background The adverse health effects of stress induced exhaustion disorder (SED) cause increasing concern in Western societies. This disorder is characterized by severe fatigue, decreased tolerance to further stress, and attention and memory lapses. Despite subjective complaints, individual cognitive deficits are not always detected in a clinical setting, which calls for the validation of more sensitive instruments. Aim The objective of this study was to investigate if a short, tablet-based serial naming task, MapCog Spectra (MCS) could be used as a marker for cognitive problems in SED. Participants The study comprised of 39 subjects (35 females, four males) with SED. Their mean age was 46,8 years (SD 10.1; range 30-60 yrs.). All participants were healthcare professionals, with a college or university degree, doctors, registered nurses, and psychologists. Methods The MCS was used to assess the number of aberrant pauses during serial naming of coloured geometrical shapes. The Coding, Matrix Reasoning, Digit Span, Symbol Search of the WAIS-IV, and RUFF 2&7 tests, were administered together with a short interview. Results Mean values were within normal reference limits for all tests, except for the MCS, which showed a significantly higher number of aberrant pauses (p < 0,001) in the SED group, compared to normal reference values. Although subjects performed within normal limits on the RUFF 2&7, a significant difference between individuals was found in the performance strategy of the participants. Conclusion Here we report that subjects with SED have performance deficits on the MCS, in terms of aberrant pause times, despite average performance on WAIS-IV tests measuring inductive reasoning, processing speed, working memory, and attention. We also demonstrate that subjects use different strategies to overcome their problems. These findings add to the growing evidence of cognitive deficits in SED and that the MCS might aid neuropsychologists in disentangling cognitive markers, important to substantiate the subjective complaints of affected individuals.
|
|
| 2. |
- Carlsson, Roger, et al.
(författare)
-
Linking aberrant pauses during object naming to letter and word decoding speed in elderly with attention complaints
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Nordic Psychology. - : Taylor & Francis Group. - 1901-2276 .- 1904-0016. ; 75:3, s. 213-226
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Attention deficit and reading difficulty are often comorbid in neuropsychiatric disorders of childhood and adolescence. Although recent research has shown how these two domains may interact in children, knowledge about such interaction in elderly is lacking. The present study tested whether this association is also present in healthy elderly with undiagnosed attention problems. Thirty-two subjects (65+ years) with life-long complaints of attention and with a Mini Mental (MMSE) cutoff of 27 points were tested with MapCog Spectra (MCS), with a word recognition test (Word Chains test) and CANTAB subtests of attention. All tests were presented on a tablet, except for the Word Chains test. The participants mean MMSE score was 29 points and their mean age was 71.5 years. Strong correlations were seen between the Word Chains test and the MCS, suggesting that a high number of aberrantly long pauses during serial naming was associated with fewer identifications of letters, words and sentences. The number of aberrant pauses was also associated with slower Reaction Time and a lower score on the Attention Shifting task of the CANTAB. The results were not associated with either gender or general intelligence. This study shows that attention is linked to decoding speed irrespective of intelligence and gender. We therefore suggest that a clinical assessment of attention deficit should also include an assessment of decoding ability, and vice versa, as these cognitive functions are strongly interdependent.
|
|
