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NIH Toolbox® Episodic Memory Measure Differentiates Older Adults with Exceptional Memory Capacity from those with Average-for-Age Cognition

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 February 2022

Tatiana Karpouzian-Rogers Open the ORCID record for Tatiana Karpouzian-Rogers [Opens in a new window] ,
Beth Makowski-Woidan ,
Alan Kuang ,
Hui Zhang ,
Angela Fought ,
Janessa Engelmeyer ,
M.-Marsel Mesulam ,
Sandra Weintraub  and
Emily Rogalski
Tatiana Karpouzian-Rogers*
Affiliation:
Mesulam Center for Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Beth Makowski-Woidan
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Alan Kuang
Affiliation:
Division of Biostatistics, Department of Preventative Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Hui Zhang
Affiliation:
Division of Biostatistics, Department of Preventative Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Angela Fought
Affiliation:
Department of Biostatistics and Informatic, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado-Denver Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
Janessa Engelmeyer
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
M.-Marsel Mesulam
Affiliation:
Mesulam Center for Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA Department of Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Sandra Weintraub
Affiliation:
Mesulam Center for Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Emily Rogalski
Affiliation:
Mesulam Center for Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
*
*Correspondence and reprint requests to: Tatiana Karpouzian-Rogers, PhD, 320 E. Superior St., Chicago, IL 60611, USA. E-mail: t-karpouzian@northwestern.edu
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Abstract

Objective:

Older adults with exceptional memory function, designated “SuperAgers,” include individuals over age 80, with episodic memory at least as good as individuals ages 50s–60s. The Northwestern University SuperAging cohort is defined by performance on an established test of verbal memory. The purpose of this study was to determine if superior verbal memory extends to nonverbal memory in SuperAgers by examining differences in the National Institutes of Health Toolbox® (NIHTB) between older adults with exceptional memory and those with average-for-age cognition.

Method:

SuperAgers (n = 46) and cognitively average-for-age older adults (n = 31) completed a comprehensive neuropsychological battery and the NIHTB Cognition module. Multiple linear regressions were used to examine differences on subtests between groups.

Results:

There was a significant effect of group on the Picture Sequence Memory score, (p = .007), such that SuperAgers had higher scores than cognitively average-for-age older adults. There were no other group effects across other non-episodic memory NIHTB Cognition measures.

Conclusions:

Findings from this study demonstrated stronger performance on the memory measure of the NIHTB in SuperAgers compared to cognitively average-for-age older adults demonstrating superior memory in not only verbal but also nonverbal episodic memory in this group. Additionally, this study adds to the literature validating the NIHTB in older adults, particularly in a novel population of adults over age 80 with exceptional memory.

Keywords

“SuperAgers”normal agingNIH Toolboxmemorycognitiondementia
Type
Brief Communication
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 29 , Issue 2 , February 2023 , pp. 230 - 234
Copyright
Copyright © INS. Published by Cambridge University Press, 2022

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