Associations between Intra-Individual Variability of Reaction Time and Cognitive Function in Cognitively Normal Senior Adults: Still beyond Good or Bad?

Aggrandized fluctuations in the series of reaction times (RTs) are a very sensitive marker of neurocognitive disorders present in neuropsychiatric populations, pathological ageing and in patients with acquired brain injury. Even though it was documented that processing inconsistency founds a background of higher-order cognitive functions disturbances, there is a vast heterogeneity regarding types of task used to compute RT-related variability, which impedes determining the relationship between elementary and more complex cognitive processes. Considering the above, our goal was to develop a relatively new assessment method based on a simple reaction time paradigm, conducive to eliciting a controlled range of intra-individual variability. It was hypothesized that performance variability might be induced by manipulation of response-stimulus interval’s length and regularity. In order to verify this hypothesis, a group of 107 healthy students was tested using a series of digitalized tasks and their results were analyzed using parametric and ex-Gaussian statistics of RTs distributional markers. In general, these analyses proved that intra-individual variability might be evoked by a given type of response-stimulus interval manipulation even when it is applied to the simple reaction time task. Collected outcomes were discussed with reference to neuroscientific concepts of attentional resources and functional neural networks.

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Prediction of cognitive function based on structural MRI images using a 3D convolutional neural net among cognitively normal older adults

American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/j.jagp.2021.01.057 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 29 (4) ◽

pp. S65-S66

Author(s):

Ashti Shah ◽

Akiko Mizuno ◽

Linghai Wang ◽

Andrea Weinstein ◽

Howard Aizenstein

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Structural Mri ◽

Neural Net ◽

Cognitively Normal

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The effects of high altitude on choice reaction time mean and intra-individual variability: Results of the Edinburgh Altitude Research Expedition of 2008.

Neuropsychology ◽

10.1037/a0018502 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 391-401 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Dominika Dykiert ◽

David Hall ◽

Nikki van Gemeren ◽

Richard Benson ◽

Geoff Der ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Reaction Time ◽

High Altitude ◽

Choice Reaction Time ◽

Individual Variability

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Acute Effects of Salvia Supplementation on Cognitive Function in Athletes During a Fatiguing Cycling Exercise: A Randomized Cross-Over, Placebo-Controlled, and Double-Blind Study

Frontiers in Nutrition ◽

10.3389/fnut.2021.771518 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Nicolas Babault ◽

Ahmad Noureddine ◽

Nicolas Amiez ◽

Damien Guillemet ◽

Carole Cometti

Keyword(s):

Heart Rate ◽

Reaction Time ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Stroop Task ◽

Perceived Exertion ◽

Digit Span ◽

Acute Effects ◽

Warm Up ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Fatiguing Exercise

Background:Salvia (sage) supplementation has been shown to improve the cognition function in healthy individuals or patients (e.g., attention, memory). To date, no study has explored its relevancy in the context of sporting performance. The aim of this study was to explore the acute effects of a combination of Salvia officinalis and Salvia lavandulaefolia on cognitive function in athletes performing a fatiguing cycling task.Methods: Twenty-six volunteers were included in this cross-over, randomized, double-bind vs. placebo trial. Two hours before the two experimental sessions (here called SAGE and PLACEBO), volunteers randomly received a supplementation of sage or placebo. During each experimental session, participants were tested at four occasions while cycling during a warm-up, in the middle and at the end of a fatiguing task and after a short 5-min recovery. Tests included a Stroop task, a simple reaction time task, and a backward digit span memory task. Heart rate and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were also measured at the beginning of the four test sessions.Results: Heart rate was significantly greater during the fatiguing exercise than during warm-up and recovery (P < 0.001) without any supplementation effect. RPE was greater during the fatiguing exercise than during warm-up and recovery (P < 0.001). Moreover, RPE was significantly lower during the SAGE session as compared to PLACEBO (P = 0.002). Reaction time was not altered during the exercise but was significantly shorter with SAGE as compared to PLACEBO (P = 0.023). The Stroop task only revealed significantly longer reaction time during warm-up as compared to recovery (P = 0.02) independently of the supplementation. The digit span memory test revealed a significant greater span score with SAGE as compared to PLACEBO (P = 0.044).Conclusion: The combination of Salvia improved the cognitive functions (perceived exertion, working memory, and reaction time). The positive effects were obtained in fresh condition and were maintained with fatigue.

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The effect of amyloid deposition on longitudinal resting-state functional connectivity in cognitively normal older adults

Alzheimer s Research & Therapy ◽

10.1186/s13195-019-0573-1 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Chemin Lin ◽

Maria Ly ◽

Helmet T. Karim ◽

Wenjing Wei ◽

Beth E. Snitz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Neural Networks ◽

Older Adults ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Functional Connectivity ◽

Resting State ◽

Clinical Symptoms ◽

Rate Of Change ◽

Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽

Cognitive Changes ◽

Cognitively Normal

Abstract Background Pathological processes contributing to Alzheimer’s disease begin decades prior to the onset of clinical symptoms. There is significant variation in cognitive changes in the presence of pathology, functional connectivity may be a marker of compensation to amyloid; however, this is not well understood. Methods We recruited 64 cognitively normal older adults who underwent neuropsychological testing and biannual magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), amyloid imaging with Pittsburgh compound B (PiB)-PET, and glucose metabolism (FDG)-PET imaging for up to 6 years. Resting-state MRI was used to estimate connectivity of seven canonical neural networks using template-based rotation. Using voxel-wise paired t-tests, we identified neural networks that displayed significant changes in connectivity across time. We investigated associations among amyloid and longitudinal changes in connectivity and cognitive function by domains. Results Left middle frontal gyrus connectivity within the memory encoding network increased over time, but the rate of change was lower with greater amyloid. This was no longer significant in an analysis where we limited the sample to only those with two time points. We found limited decline in cognitive domains overall. Greater functional connectivity was associated with better attention/processing speed and executive function (independent of time) in those with lower amyloid but was associated with worse function with greater amyloid. Conclusions Increased functional connectivity serves to preserve cognitive function in normal aging and may fail in the presence of pathology consistent with compensatory models.

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How does cognitive function measured by the reaction time and critical flicker fusion frequency correlate with the academic performance of students?

BMC Medical Education ◽

10.1186/s12909-020-02416-7 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Archana Prabu Kumar ◽

Abirami Omprakash ◽

Maheshkumar Kuppusamy ◽

Maruthy K.N. ◽

Sathiyasekaran B.W.C. ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Academic Performance ◽

Reaction Time ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Undergraduate Students ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Female Students ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Flicker Fusion Frequency ◽

Fusion Frequency ◽

And Gender

Abstract Background The reaction time (RT) is “the time taken for the appearance of rapid voluntary reaction by an individual following a stimulus, either auditory or visual” and the Critical Flickering Fusion Frequency (CFFF) is “the rate at which successively presented light stimuli appear to be steady and continuous”. RT and CFFF are commonly used for the assessment of cognitive functions that are known to influence academic performance. However, data about the exact correlation between these are scarce, particularly in India. This research aimed to study the association between visual RT (VRT), auditory RT (ART) and CFFF and their impact on the academic performance of undergraduate students. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted on 700 students of Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at a private medical university in South India, during the period from 2015 to 2017. The VRT, ART and CFFF were evaluated, and the best out of three subsequent attempts was recorded. The mean score (in percentage) of the three best marks out of the five internal assessments for the course during each academic year was considered for analysis. The association between the different cognitive tests and the average academic performance was analysed. Results Female students had faster VRT (n = 345, mean = 243.97, SD = 83.87) than male students (n = 273, mean = 274.86, SD = 96.97) (p = 0.001). VRT and ART had a moderate negative correlation with academic performance (for ART, r = − 0.42, p < 0.001; for VRT; r = − 0.40, p < 0.001). CFFF had a very weak positive correlation with academic performance (r = 0.19, p = 0.01). The only independent predictors of academic performance were RT and gender (Adjusted R2 = 0.11). Conclusion Although there is a correlation between CFFF and cognitive function, our study showed only a weak correlation between CFFF and academic performance. Female students had faster RTs, and gender was an independent predictor of academic performance. Rather, students with faster RTs appear to have an advantage in academic performance.

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The Effects of High-Intensity Interval Exercise and Hypoxia on Cognition in Sedentary Young Adults

Medicina ◽

10.3390/medicina55020043 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 55 (2) ◽

pp. 43 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Shengyan Sun ◽

Paul D. Loprinzi ◽

Hongwei Guan ◽

Liye Zou ◽

Zhaowei Kong ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Reaction Time ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

High Intensity ◽

Cognitive Task ◽

Response Accuracy ◽

Acute Bout ◽

Moderate Hypoxia ◽

Interval Exercise ◽

Hypoxic Conditions ◽

High Intensity Interval

Background and Objectives: Limited research has evaluated the effects of acute exercise on cognition under different conditions of inspired oxygenation. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of high-intensity interval exercise (HIE) under normoxia (inspired fraction of oxygen (FIO2): 0.209) and moderate hypoxia (FIO2: 0.154) on cognitive function. Design: A single-blinded cross-over design was used to observe the main effects of exercise and oxygen level, and interaction effects on cognitive task performance. Methods: Twenty inactive adults (10 males and 10 females, 19–27 years old) performed a cognitive task (i.e., the Go/No-Go task) before and immediately after an acute bout of HIE under normoxic and hypoxic conditions. The HIE comprised 10 repetitions of 6 s high-intensity cycling against 7.5% body weight interspersed with 30 s passive recovery. Heart rate, peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2) and rating of perceived exertion were monitored. Results: The acute bout of HIE did not affect the reaction time (p = 0.204, η2 = 0.083) but the accuracy rate decreased significantly after HIE under both normoxic and hypoxic conditions (p = 0.001, η2 = 0.467). Moreover, moderate hypoxia had no influence either on reaction time (p = 0.782, η2 = 0.004) or response accuracy (p = 0.972, η2 < 0.001). Conclusions: These results indicate that an acute session of HIE may impair response accuracy immediately post-HIE, without sacrificing reaction time. Meanwhile moderate hypoxia was found to have no adverse effect on cognitive function in inactive young adults, at least in the present study.

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The relationship between physical activity, BMI, circadian rhythm, and sleep with cognition in bipolar disorder

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s003329172000210x ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Jennifer L. Burgess ◽

Andrew J. Bradley ◽

Kirstie N. Anderson ◽

P. Gallagher ◽

R. Hamish McAllister-Williams

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Bipolar Disorder ◽

Circadian Rhythm ◽

Reaction Time ◽

Mood State ◽

Significant Proportion ◽

Individual Variability ◽

Cognitive Tasks ◽

Physical Parameters ◽

Activity Levels

Abstract Background Cognitive deficits affect a significant proportion of patients with bipolar disorder (BD). Problems with sustained attention have been found independent of mood state and the causes are unclear. We aimed to investigate whether physical parameters such as activity levels, sleep, and body mass index (BMI) may be contributing factors. Methods Forty-six patients with BD and 42 controls completed a battery of neuropsychological tests and wore a triaxial accelerometer for 21 days which collected information on physical activity, sleep, and circadian rhythm. Ex-Gaussian analyses were used to characterise reaction time distributions. We used hierarchical regression analyses to examine whether physical activity, BMI, circadian rhythm, and sleep predicted variance in the performance of cognitive tasks. Results Neither physical activity, BMI, nor circadian rhythm predicted significant variance on any of the cognitive tasks. However, the presence of a sleep abnormality significantly predicted a higher intra-individual variability of the reaction time distributions on the Attention Network Task. Conclusions This study suggests that there is an association between sleep abnormalities and cognition in BD, with little or no relationship with physical activity, BMI, and circadian rhythm.

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Effect of Bhramari pranayama practice on simple reaction time in healthy adolescents – a randomized control trial

International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health ◽

10.1515/ijamh-2019-0244 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Maheshkumar Kuppusamy ◽

Dilara Kamaldeen ◽

Ravishankar Pitani ◽

Julius Amaldas ◽

Padmavathi Ramasamy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Reaction Time ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Simple Reaction Time ◽

Control Group ◽

Visual Reaction Time ◽

Before And After ◽

Visual Reaction ◽

Auditory Reaction Time ◽

Randomized Control ◽

Apparently Healthy

AbstractObjectivesThe improvement in the/reaction time is important, as it is an indicator of cognitive function. Therefore, there is a need, especially for adolescents in the form of techniques or courses that can improve the reaction time. Yoga was found to cause a better improvement in the health of the individuals. The present study intended to show the effects of Bhramari pranayama (Bhr.P) on reaction time in the healthy adolescents.MethodsOf the 730 potential subjects screened, 520 apparently healthy adolescents randomly assigned to either the Bhr.P group (n-260) or control group (n-260). Bhr.P group practiced the bhramari pranayama for 3 days in a week for 6 months. The Auditory Reaction Time (ART) and the Visual Reaction Time (VRT) were assessed before and after Bhr.P pranayama practice.ResultsBhr.P group shows significant shortening of response time in both VRT (from 267.13 ± 52.65 to 249.87 ± 39.41 ms) and ART (from 237.42 ± 48.12 to 227.91 ± 34.60 ms) after 6 months of Bhr.P practice. In control group subjects, no such significant changes were found (p > 0.05).ConclusionsShortening of RT implies an improvement in the information processing and reflexes. This beneficial effect of Bhr.P on reaction time can be used for improving cognitive function in the adolescents for their academic performances.

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Effects of SuperUlam on Supporting Concentration and Mood: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Crossover Study

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2013/238454 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2013 ◽

pp. 1-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Jay K Udani

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Reaction Time ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Executive Functioning ◽

Crossover Study ◽

Double Blind ◽

Double Blind Placebo ◽

Study Product ◽

Total Mood Disturbance ◽

Significant Difference

Background. SuperUlam is a proprietary blend of natural ingredients aimed at supporting brain health. We aimed to evaluate the effect of SuperUlam on attention and mood in healthy adults.Methods. Twenty healthy individuals aged 35–65 were enrolled in this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study. Study duration was 3 weeks and consisted of 3 visits. Measurement of cognitive function included computer-based testing of reaction time, complex attention, working memory, sustained attention, and executive functioning. Mood testing was performed via the profile of mood states (POMS) survey and the Chalder fatigue scale.Results. Cognitive function testing demonstrated a significant improvement from baseline in executive functioning, cognitive flexibility, reaction time, and working memory in the product group only (P<0.05). When comparing the study product to placebo, the data demonstrated a significant decrease in tension, depression, and anger (P<0.05). There was no significant difference between the product and placebo in the other measures of mood, including vigor, fatigue, confusion, and total mood disturbance. No adverse events were reported.Conclusions.Supplementation with SuperUlam is safe to consume with potential benefits to cognitive function and mood.

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