The INECO Frontal Screening tool differentiates behavioral variant - frontotemporal dementia (bv-FTD) from major depression

ABSTRACT Executive dysfunction may result from prefrontal circuitry involvement occurring in both neurodegenerative diseases and psychiatric disorders. Moreover, multiple neuropsychiatric conditions, may present with overlapping behavioral and cognitive symptoms, making differential diagnosis challenging, especially during earlier stages. In this sense, cognitive assessment may contribute to the differential diagnosis by providing an objective and quantifiable set of measures that has the potential to distinguish clinical conditions otherwise perceived in everyday clinical settings as quite similar. Objective: The goal of this study was to investigate the utility of the INECO Frontal Screening (IFS) for differentiating bv-FTD patients from patients with Major Depression. Methods: We studied 49 patients with bv-FTD diagnosis and 30 patients diagnosed with unipolar depression compared to a control group of 26 healthy controls using the INECO Frontal Screening (IFS), the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-Revised (ACE-R). Results: Patient groups differed significantly on the motor inhibitory control (U=437.0, p<0.01), verbal working memory (U=298.0, p<0.001), spatial working memory (U=300.5, p<0.001), proverbs (U=341.5, p<0.001) and verbal inhibitory control (U=316.0, p<0.001) subtests, with bv-FTD patients scoring significantly lower than patients with depression. Conclusion: Our results suggest the IFS can be considered a useful tool for detecting executive dysfunction in both depression and bv-FTD patients and, perhaps more importantly, that it has the potential to help differentiate these two conditions.

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Verbal and spatial working memory performance among HIV-infected adults

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617702814278 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 8 (4) ◽

pp. 532-538 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

CHARLES H. HINKIN ◽

DAVID J. HARDY ◽

KAREN I. MASON ◽

STEVEN A. CASTELLON ◽

MONA N. LAM ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Mixed Model ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Memory Task ◽

Executive Dysfunction ◽

Spatial Location ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Memory Condition ◽

Percent Accuracy

Subtypes of working memory performance were examined in a cohort of 50 HIV-infected adults and 23 uninfected controls using an n-back paradigm (2-back) in which alphabetic stimuli were quasi-randomly presented to a quadrant of a computer monitor. In the verbal working memory condition, participants determined whether each successive letter matched the letter that appeared two previously in the series, regardless of spatial location. In the spatial working memory condition, participants determined whether each letter matched the spatial location of the letter that had appeared two previously, regardless of letter identity. The dependent variable was percent accuracy in each condition. Results of mixed model ANOVA revealed that the HIV-infected participants performed significantly worse than controls on both the verbal and spatial working memory tasks. A significant main effect for working memory condition was also present with both participant groups performing better on the spatial working memory task. These results, the first study of HIV-infected adults to directly compare verbal versus spatial working memory performance using the identical test stimuli across task conditions, suggests that HIV infection is associated with a decrement in working memory efficiency that is equally apparent for both verbal and spatial processing. These findings implicate central executive dysfunction as a likely substrate and provide the basis for hypothesizing that decline in working memory may contribute to other HIV-associated neuropsychological deficits. (JINS, 2002, 8, 532–538.)

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Working memory task performance and chunking in early Alzheimer's disease

The British Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1192/bjp.bp.110.083857 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 198 (5) ◽

pp. 398-403 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Jonathan Huntley ◽

Daniel Bor ◽

Adam Hampshire ◽

Adrian Owen ◽

Robert Howard

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Working Memory ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Control Group ◽

Mild Disease ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Encoding Strategy

BackgroundChunking is a powerful encoding strategy that significantly improves working memory performance in normal young people.AimsTo investigate chunking in patients with mild Alzheimer's disease and in a control group of elderly people without cognitive impairment.MethodPeople with mild Alzheimer's disease (n = 28) were recruited and divided according to Mini-Mental State Examination score into mild and very mild disease groups. A control group of 15 elderly individuals was also recruited. All participants performed digit and spatial working memory tasks requiring either unstructured sequences or structured sequences (which encourage chunking of information) to be recalled.ResultsThe control group and both disease groups performed significantly better on structured trials of the digit working memory tasks, indicating successful use of chunking strategies to improve verbal working memory performance. The control and very mild disease groups also performed significantly better on structured trials of the spatial task, whereas those with mild disease demonstrated no significant difference between the structured and unstructured spatial conditions.ConclusionsThe ability to use chunking as an encoding strategy to improve verbal working memory performance is preserved at the mild stage of Alzheimer's disease, whereas use of chunking to improve spatial working memory is impaired by this stage. Simple training in the use of chunking might be a beneficial therapeutic strategy to prolong working memory functioning in patients at the earliest stage of Alzheimer's disease.

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Impact of Urban Nature on Executive Functioning in Early and Middle Childhood

Environment and Behavior ◽

10.1177/0013916515603095 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 49 (1) ◽

pp. 3-30 ◽

Cited By ~ 48

Author(s):

Anne R. Schutte ◽

Julia C. Torquati ◽

Heidi L. Beattie

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Executive Functioning ◽

Inhibitory Control ◽

Middle Childhood ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Attention Task ◽

Urban Streets ◽

Attention Restoration ◽

Restorative Environment

According to attention restoration theory, directed attention can become fatigued and then be restored by spending time in a restorative environment. This study examined the restorative effects of nature on children’s executive functioning. Seven- to 8-year-olds (school aged, n = 34) and 4- to 5-year-olds (preschool, n = 33) participated in two sessions in which they completed an activity to fatigue attention, then walked along urban streets (urban walk) in one session and in a park-like area (nature walk) in another session, and finally completed assessments of working memory, inhibitory control, and attention. Children responded faster on the attention task after a nature walk than an urban walk. School-aged children performed significantly better on the attention task than preschoolers following the nature walk, but not urban walk. Walk type did not affect inhibitory control or verbal working memory. However, preschoolers’ spatial working memory remained more stable following the nature walk than the urban walk.

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Inhibitory Control in Verbal Working Memory Across the Lifespan

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e512682013-387 ◽

2007 ◽

Author(s):

Christelle Robert ◽

Delphine Fagot ◽

Thierry Lecerf ◽

Anik de Ribaupierre

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Inhibitory Control ◽

Verbal Working Memory

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Shared Predictors of Academic Achievement in Children with ADHD: A Multi-Sample Study

Journal of Attention Disorders ◽

10.1177/10870547211012039 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 108705472110120

Author(s):

Kelly D. Carrasco ◽

Chi-Ching Chuang ◽

Gail Tripp

Keyword(s):

Academic Achievement ◽

Working Memory ◽

Word Reading ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

The United States ◽

Children With Adhd ◽

Visual Spatial ◽

Visual Spatial Working Memory ◽

Predictors Of Academic Achievement

Objective: To identify common and shared predictors of academic achievement across samples of children with ADHD. Method: Two clinically referred samples from New Zealand (1 n = 88, 82% boys; 2 n = 121, 79% boys) and two community samples from the United States (3 n = 111, 65% boys; 4 n = 114, 69% boys), completed similar diagnostic, cognitive and academic assessments. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses identified significant predictors of word reading, spelling, and math computation performance in each sample. Results: Entered after IQ, semantic language, age at testing, and verbal working memory emerged as consistent predictors of achievement across academic subjects and samples. Visual-spatial working memory contributed to variance in math performance only. Symptom severity explained limited variance. Conclusions: We recommend evaluations of children with ADHD incorporate assessments of working memory and language skills. Classroom/academic interventions should accommodate reduced working memory and address any identified language weaknesses.

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Dissociable Mechanisms of Verbal Working Memory Revealed through Multivariate Lesion Mapping

Cerebral Cortex ◽

10.1093/cercor/bhz259 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 30 (4) ◽

pp. 2542-2554 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Maryam Ghaleh ◽

Elizabeth H Lacey ◽

Mackenzie E Fama ◽

Zainab Anbari ◽

Andrew T DeMarco ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Superior Temporal Gyrus ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Brain Structures ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Task Demands ◽

Auditory Information ◽

Verbal Information ◽

Task Conditions

Abstract Two maintenance mechanisms with separate neural systems have been suggested for verbal working memory: articulatory-rehearsal and non-articulatory maintenance. Although lesion data would be key to understanding the essential neural substrates of these systems, there is little evidence from lesion studies that the two proposed mechanisms crucially rely on different neuroanatomical substrates. We examined 39 healthy adults and 71 individuals with chronic left-hemisphere stroke to determine if verbal working memory tasks with varying demands would rely on dissociable brain structures. Multivariate lesion–symptom mapping was used to identify the brain regions involved in each task, controlling for spatial working memory scores. Maintenance of verbal information relied on distinct brain regions depending on task demands: sensorimotor cortex under higher demands and superior temporal gyrus (STG) under lower demands. Inferior parietal cortex and posterior STG were involved under both low and high demands. These results suggest that maintenance of auditory information preferentially relies on auditory-phonological storage in the STG via a nonarticulatory maintenance when demands are low. Under higher demands, sensorimotor regions are crucial for the articulatory rehearsal process, which reduces the reliance on STG for maintenance. Lesions to either of these regions impair maintenance of verbal information preferentially under the appropriate task conditions.

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Mental Lexicon, Working Memory and L2 (English) Vocabulary in Polish Students with and without Dyslexia

Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal ◽

10.26529/cepsj.155 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 71-89

Author(s):

Marta Łockiewicz ◽

Martyna Jaskulska

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Word Reading ◽

Learning Experience ◽

Mental Lexicon ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Educational Programme ◽

Vocabulary Knowledge ◽

Control Group ◽

Word Knowledge ◽

L2 Vocabulary

The aim of our study was to examine the relationship between access to the mental lexicon, working memory and knowledge of English (L2) vocabulary. Analyses were undertaken amongst monolingual speakers of Polish (26 with dyslexia, 24 without) who studied English as a second language as part of their compulsory educational programme at school.We assumed that students with dyslexia would manifest deficits in access to the mental lexicon and verbal working memory, and would have a limited L2 vocabulary. We also assumed that better access to the mental lexicon facilitates knowledge of English (L2) vocabulary, and that this relationship is present in both the criterion and the control group. All of the students participated in both parts of the assessment, the group part (i.e., questionnaire, IQ test, two vocabulary tasks) and the individual part (i.e., psychological measures: verbal working memory, RAN, verbal fluency, and single word reading in L1 task). We found that students with dyslexia exhibited deficits in the speed of access to data from the mental lexicon. The predictive function of memory for vocabulary was more conspicuous in the control group; in the criterion group, the result might constitute a risk factor for L2 vocabulary acquisition in dyslexia, which may manifest with increased proficiency in word knowledge. Poor vocabulary knowledge renders the L2 learning experience difficult, as it impairs students’ reading comprehension, writing and conversational skills.

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Testing Conclusions From Functional Imaging of Working Memory with Data From Acute Stroke

Behavioural Neurology ◽

10.1155/2007/396946 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 37-43 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Lisa E. Philipose ◽

Hannah Alphs ◽

Vivek Prabhakaran ◽

Argye E. Hillis

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Acute Stroke ◽

Functional Imaging ◽

Right Hemisphere ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Stroke Patients ◽

Imaging Results ◽

Cortical Stroke ◽

The Right

Functional imaging studies indicate that the left hemisphere mediates verbal working memory, while the right hemisphere mediates both verbal and spatial working memory. We evaluated acute stroke patients with working memory tests and imaging to identify whether unilateral dysfunction causes deficits in spatial and/or verbal working memory deficits. While left cortical stroke patients had verbal working memory impairments (p< 0.003), right cortical stroke patients had both verbal (p< 0.007) and spatial working memory (p< 0.03) impairments, confirming functional imaging results. Patients with transient ischemic stroke and patients with non-cortical stroke did not have significant deficits in working memory in either modality.

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Social Skills Intervention Participation and Associated Improvements in Executive Function Performance

Autism Research and Treatment ◽

10.1155/2017/5843851 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 2017 ◽

pp. 1-13 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Shawn E. Christ ◽

Janine P. Stichter ◽

Karen V. O’Connor ◽

Kimberly Bodner ◽

Amanda J. Moffitt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Executive Function ◽

Social Competence ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Neurodevelopmental Disorder ◽

Memory Task ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Mixing Costs ◽

Adolescents With Asd

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impairments in social communication. It has been postulated that such difficulties are related to disruptions in underlying cognitive processes such as executive function. The present study examined potential changes in executive function performance associated with participation in the Social Competence Intervention (SCI) program, a short-term intervention designed to improve social competence in adolescents with ASD. Laboratory behavioral performance measures were used to separately evaluate potential intervention-related changes in individual executive function component processes (i.e., working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility) in a sample of 22 adolescents with ASD both before and after intervention. For comparison purposes, a demographically matched sample of 14 individuals without ASD was assessed at identical time intervals. Intervention-related improvements were observed on the working memory task, with gains evident in spatial working memory and, to a slightly lesser degree, verbal working memory. Significant improvements were also found for a working memory-related aspect of the task switching test (i.e., mixing costs). Taken together, these findings provide preliminary support for the hypothesis that participation in the SCI program is accompanied by changes in underlying neurocognitive processes such as working memory.

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