Hui-Ling Yang1,2, Hsin Chu3,4, Ching-Chiu Kao5,6, Nae-Fang Miao1, Pi-Chen Chang5, Philip Tseng7,8,9, Anthony Paul O'Brien10, Kuei-Ru Chou5,11,12,13. 1. Post-Baccalaureate Program in Nursing, College of Nursing, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 2. School of Occupational Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 3. Institute of Aerospace and Undersea Medicine, School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 4. Department of Neurology, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 5. School of Nursing, College of Nursing, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 6. Department of Nursing, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 7. Graduate Institute of Humanities in Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 8. Graduate Institute of Mind, Brain and Consciousness, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 9. Brain and Consciousness Research Center, TMU-Shuang Ho Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China. 10. School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Health and Medicine, The University of Newcastle (UoN), Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. 11. Department of Nursing, Taipei Medical University-Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 12. Center for Nursing and Healthcare Research in Clinical Practice Application, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. 13. Psychiatric Research Center, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: We aimed to analyze the effects of multidomain attention training on alertness, sustained attention, and visual-spatial attention in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). DESIGN: The design used in this study was a two-arm, parallel group, double-blind randomized controlled trial. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: The participants of the study were seventy-eight older adults with MCI (mean age: 79.5 ± 7.9 years) from retirement centers and community housing for the elderly. INTERVENTION: The participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (multidomain attention training, n = 39) or an active control group (n = 39). Both groups underwent training sessions for 45 minutes three times per week for 6 weeks (18 sessions in total). MEASURES: The main efficacy indicator was alertness (Trail Making Test Part B), sustained attention (Digit Vigilance Test), and visual-spatial attention (Trail Making Test Part A). The secondary outcome indicators were other cognitive functions (Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE] and Montreal Cognitive Assessment [MoCA] subscales). Measurements were obtained at pretest, posttest, and 3 and 6 months after training. RESULTS: The results were analyzed by a generalized estimating equation (GEE), which indicated that attention outcomes (alertness, sustained attention, and visual-spatial attention) of the experimental group did not improve after training. However, the experimental group displayed a significant improvement in the attention, memory, and orientation of MMSE and MoCA subscales over a period of 6 months and also showed superior results compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS:Multidomain attention training demonstrated improved alertness and visual-spatial attention for posttest after 6 months. We also outline potential future advances in attention training for improving attention in older adults with MCI.
RCT Entities:
OBJECTIVES: We aimed to analyze the effects of multidomain attention training on alertness, sustained attention, and visual-spatial attention in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). DESIGN: The design used in this study was a two-arm, parallel group, double-blind randomized controlled trial. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: The participants of the study were seventy-eight older adults with MCI (mean age: 79.5 ± 7.9 years) from retirement centers and community housing for the elderly. INTERVENTION: The participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (multidomain attention training, n = 39) or an active control group (n = 39). Both groups underwent training sessions for 45 minutes three times per week for 6 weeks (18 sessions in total). MEASURES: The main efficacy indicator was alertness (Trail Making Test Part B), sustained attention (Digit Vigilance Test), and visual-spatial attention (Trail Making Test Part A). The secondary outcome indicators were other cognitive functions (Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE] and Montreal Cognitive Assessment [MoCA] subscales). Measurements were obtained at pretest, posttest, and 3 and 6 months after training. RESULTS: The results were analyzed by a generalized estimating equation (GEE), which indicated that attention outcomes (alertness, sustained attention, and visual-spatial attention) of the experimental group did not improve after training. However, the experimental group displayed a significant improvement in the attention, memory, and orientation of MMSE and MoCA subscales over a period of 6 months and also showed superior results compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Multidomain attention training demonstrated improved alertness and visual-spatial attention for posttest after 6 months. We also outline potential future advances in attention training for improving attention in older adults with MCI.
Authors: Minh-Phuong Huynh-Le; Michelle D Tibbs; Roshan Karunamuni; Mia Salans; Kathryn R Tringale; Anthony Yip; Michael Connor; Aaron B Simon; Lucas K Vitzthum; Anny Reyes; Anna Christina Macari; Vitali Moiseenko; Carrie R McDonald; Jona A Hattangadi-Gluth Journal: Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys Date: 2021-01-04 Impact factor: 8.013