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Premorbid personality traits as predictors for incident predementia syndromes: a multistate model approach
- Morgan J. Schaeffer, Stuart W.S. MacDonald, Theone S.E. Paterson
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- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , First View
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 29 January 2024, pp. 1-11
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Objective:
Associations have been found between five-factor model (FFM) personality traits and risk of developing specific predementia syndromes such as subjective cognitive decline (SCD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The aims of this study were to: 1) Compare baseline FFM traits between participants who transitioned from healthy cognition or SCD to amnestic MCI (aMCI) versus non-amnestic MCI (naMCI); and 2) Determine the relationship between FFM traits and risk of transition between predementia cognitive states.
Methods:Participants were 562 older adults from the Einstein Aging Study, 378 of which had at least one follow-up assessment. Baseline data collected included levels of FFM personality traits, anxiety and depressive symptoms, medical history, performance on a cognitive battery, and demographics. Follow-up cognitive diagnoses were also recorded.
Results:Mann–Whitney U tests revealed no differences in baseline levels of FFM personality traits between participants who developed aMCI compared to those who developed naMCI. A four-state multistate Markov model revealed that higher levels of conscientiousness were protective against developing SCD while higher levels of neuroticism resulted in an increased risk of developing SCD. Further, higher levels of extraversion were protective against developing naMCI.
Conclusions:FFM personality traits may be useful in improving predictions of who is at greatest risk for developing specific predementia syndromes. Information on these personality traits could enrich clinical trials by permitting trials to target individuals who are at greatest risk for developing specific forms of cognitive impairment. These results should be replicated in future studies with larger sample sizes and younger participants.
2 Neuropsychological Test Performance Following Acute COVID-19 Infection Recovery: A Case Control Study
- Theone S. E. Paterson, Kristina M Gicas
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- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 875-876
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Objective:
Cognition has been identified as an area of priority in examining health impacts of COVID-19 infection, and evidence suggests the virus invades the brain, with potential for long-term cognitive impact. Studies utilizing screening measures have reported cognitive sequelae (e.g., attention disorder, executive dysfunction) of the post-COVID-19 condition (i.e., long-haulers). More extensive examination of cognitive difficulties via comprehensive neuropsychological assessment is critical to informing treatment for those experiencing cognitive or functional difficulties post-infection. We aimed to comprehensively evaluate cognitive resiliencies and vulnerabilities of acutely recovered COVID-19 patients, across key domains (i.e., attention, processing speed, language, visuospatial abilities, memory, executive functioning), compared to healthy controls.
Participants and Methods:Adults (N=103; aged 19-85; 69.2% female) who had COVID-19 at least three months prior (n=50) and those with no history of infection (n=53) completed demographic and health questionnaires via Qualtrics, along with measures of depressive (CES-D) and anxiety (GAD-7) symptoms, the Lawton-Brody Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) Scale, and a measure of subjective cognitive difficulties (SCD-Q). Participants (n=84) completed a teleneuropsychology assessment including a short interview and battery of neuropsychological tests assessing attention (BTA, Digit Span Forward), processing speed (DKEFS Colour Naming & Word Reading, SDMT), language (FAS, Animals, NAB Naming), visuospatial abilities (JLO, RCFT Copy), verbal and visual memory (HVLT-R, NAB Shape Learning, RCFT), and executive function (DKEFS Color-Word Interference & Switching, Digit Span Backward & Sequencing, BRIEF), and including multiple measures of cognitive effort/assessment validity (RFIT, RDS), and a self-report measure of symptom validity (SIMS). T-tests were used to examine demographic and health variables between COVID-19 and control groups. MANCOVA were used to examine group differences across each cognitive domain assessed, and across cognitive effort and symptom validity tasks, while controlling for English language status.
Results:Group comparisons indicated that the COVID-19 group was slightly older (mean age = 40 vs. 34 yrs.; f=-2.101, p=0.04). Those who had COVID-19 reported more difficulties completing IADLs (f=2.204; p=0.03), more depressive symptoms (f=-2.299; p=0.02), and more subjective cognitive difficulties (f=-3.886; p<0.01). Examination of cognitive performance indicated a main effect of prior infection on executive function, controlling for language status (Wilks’ /\=0.817, F(6,73)=2.733, p=0.02). Specifically, having COVID-19 was associated with worse DKEFS Colour-Word Switching performance (p=0.01) and slightly higher selfreported difficulties on the BRIEF MI (p=0.04). No other significant group differences were seen across cognitive domains. There was also a main effect of COVID-19 infection on effort and symptom validity task performance (Wilks’ /\=0.705, F(10,70)=2.923, p<0.01). Specifically, prior infection was associated with higher SIMS Neurologic Impairment (p<0.01) and Amnestic Disorders (p<0.01) subscale scores, and paradoxically, slightly higher RFIT combined scores (p=0.02).
Conclusions:Interestingly, results indicate a significant role for subjective cognitive complaints and potential exaggeration of cognitive symptoms post-COVID-19 infection, in the absence of differences in objective performance in most cognitive domains. While subtle differences are seen on some executive function measures, mean group differences are small, and in the context of higher SIMS subscale scores, may not be readily interpretable. Studies employing similarly comprehensive neuropsychological assessments including validity measures in larger samples are needed to further disambiguate potential objective cognitive performance decrements from subjectively experienced difficulties.
41 The Role of Physical Activity, Social Support and Genetic Risk in Age-Related Cognitive Decline Over Time: A UK Biobank Study
- Madeline A Gregory, Alexandre Henri-Bhargava, Theone S. E. Paterson
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- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 350-351
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This study aimed to determine how modifiable risk factors, such as physical exercise and social support, and non-modifiable risk factors, such as genetic risk may affect cognitive function over time in older adults. As well, the study explored how changes in modifiable risk factors (i.e., increase in exercise) may affect cognitive function over time. This research question was shaped with the help of a patient partner team.
Participants and Methods:The study used UK Biobank data, and patient partners were involved in shaping research questions/goals. The UK Biobank study had participants complete comprehensive baseline assessments (2006-2010), with subgroups also completing repeat assessments (2012-2013), imaging assessments (2014-ongoing) and/or repeat imaging assessments (2019-ongoing; i.e., 2-4 data points per participant). Age, sex, education, ethnicity, and apolipoprotein E (APOE) e4 status (at least one e4 allele present) data were collected at baseline. Employment, physical activity, social support, and recent depressive symptom data were collected across timepoints. A Fluid intelligence score was obtained at each timepoint via a series of thirteen 1-pt. reasoning tasks (range: 0-13). Participants who did not complete cognitive testing at baseline and at least one other time point, and those with neurological conditions or events (e.g., stroke, epilepsy, dementia) were excluded (final N=17,409).
Multi-Level Modeling (with Maximum Likelihood) was utilized, with fluid intelligence as the primary outcome measure. We ran Model 1: fully unconditioned, Model 2: with time predictor in years (baseline= 0), and Model 3: with baseline physical activity, social support and APOE e-4 predictors and covariates (mean-centered as appropriate), time-varying physical activity and social support predictors, and interaction terms. Nonsignificant interaction terms were trimmed from Model 3 to facilitate interpretation.
Results:Model 1 was significant (p<.001) with an intraclass correlation (ICC) of 0.64, suggesting that 64% of the total variance in fluid intelligence in this sample is due to interindividual differences. Model 2 revealed that the average fluid intelligence score at baseline mean age (55.85) was 6.79 and significantly decreased with each year increase since baseline. Results from Model 3 (trimmed) revealed that being male, white, and having at least a university degree were associated with higher score at baseline, while being older and having more recent depressive symptoms were associated with lower scores. Higher social support quality was associated with higher scores while higher social support quantity was associated with lower scores at baseline; however, higher social support quantity at baseline was associated with less decline in scores over time. Surprisingly, having at least one e4 allele was associated with higher scores. Engaging in more moderate physical activity was associated with lower scores at baseline, however, individuals who increased the length of their moderate physical activity sessions over time showed higher timepoint-specific fluid intelligence scores. Additional significant interactions will be elaborated.
Conclusions:Results suggest that increases in the length of moderate physical activity exercise sessions were associated with better cognitive function over time. Having better social support quality was also associated with better cognitive function, while higher social support quantity was associated with less cognitive decline over time. These findings suggest that positive lifestyle changes in older adulthood may slow cognitive decline.
66 An Exploratory Analysis of the Moderating Effect of Internalizing Symptoms on Memory Performance Following COVID-19 Infection.
- Samantha J Feldman, Katie C Benitah, Theone SE Paterson, Kristina M Gicas
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- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 61-62
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Objective:
Cognitive difficulties are amongst the most frequently reported sequelae following COVID-19 infection, even in those experiencing mild to moderate illness (Matos et al., 2021). Recent research has identified patterns of diminished cognitive performance on tests of memory and executive functioning in COVID-19 cases; however, the etiology of neurocognitive difficulties remains unclear (Delgado-Alonso et al., 2022). Emerging evidence has identified moderate associations between decreased performance on neuropsychological tests of memory and elevated anxiety and depression symptom reporting in COVID-19 patients. Similar associations are well-established in the literature in persons with anxiety and depression disorders, warranting further investigation as to whether mental health variables such as internalizing symptom severity may moderate the association between COVID-19 illness and cognitive difficulties. This study examined how internalizing symptoms as indexed by depression and anxiety symptom scales may differentially influence performance on neuropsychological tests of memory between persons who have and have not had COVID-19.
Participants and Methods:In this cross-sectional study, 104 adults aged 19-80, were recruited in Ontario and British Columbia, Canada; 84 adults met inclusion criteria and participated in neuropsychological testing. There were 40 participants who tested positive for COVID-19 infection (N=44 with no suspected exposures or confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19). Participants had no history of dementia, mild cognitive impairment, or other known neurological disorder. Anxiety and depression symptoms were measured using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) via self-report on Qualtrics. Memory encoding and delayed recognition performance were assessed using the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test Revised (HVLT-R) and the Neuropsychological Assessment Battery Shape Learning subtest (NAB-SL). To test for potential moderating effects of anxiety and depression symptoms on the association between COVID-19 infection status and memory performance, a series of multiple linear regressions were conducted. Age and sex were included as covariates in all analyses.
Results:Moderation analyses revealed that the interaction between COVID-19 infection and anxiety symptoms accounted for a significant portion of variance in both HVLT-R recognition (B= -0.78, SE= 0.34, p<0.05) and NAB-SL delayed recognition scores (B= -0.83, SE= 0.35, p<0.05). Simple slopes analyses revealed that among participants who tested positive for COVID-19 infection, higher GAD-7 scores were associated with lower verbal and visual recognition scores. A similar interaction was observed between COVID-19 and depressive symptoms in accounting for variance in NAB-SL delayed recognition scores, however, for that model the threshold of p=0.05 was not met in our small sample (p=0.07).
Conclusions:Findings demonstrate that anxiety symptom severity had a moderating effect on the impact of COVID-19 on delayed retrieval of verbal and visual information from memory. Future work in a larger sample is needed to further elucidate the potential moderating role of depression on memory in COVID-19 positive persons, as the current work suggests that depression symptoms could have a similar impact as anxiety. Further identifying the relationships between key modifiable psychological factors such as anxiety and memory following COVID-19 infection will provide insight into potential interventions to minimize the negative effects of internalizing symptoms on long-term cognitive outcomes.
4 Impact of APOE-ε Alleles on Brain Structure and Function in Healthy Older Adults: A VBM and DTI Replication Study
- Colleen Lacey, Jodie Gawryluk, Theone Paterson
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- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 882-883
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Objective:
The Apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene has been established in the Alzheimer’s disease (AD) literature to impact brain structure and function and may also show congruent effects in healthy older adults, although findings in this population are much less consistent. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), and neuropsychological measures present as useful, non-invasive tools to investigate the impact of APOE-e allele status on grey matter structure, white matter integrity, and cognitive functioning, respectively. Nonetheless, studies to date have revealed mix findings and few studies have taken a multimodal approach to investigating APOE’s effects. Thus, the objective of the current study was to replicate and expand upon the multimodal neuroimaging study conducted by Honea et al. (2009), that examined the impact of APOE-e4 presence on brain structure and cognitive function in healthy older adults, with the addition of APOE-e2 carriers and cognitive composite measures. The aim of the current replication study was to identify reliable changes to grey matter volume and white matter integrity in healthy older adults as it relates to APOE-e allele presence and cognitive performance. This represents one of the first studies to investigate both the risk and protective effects of APOE-e alleles (e4 and e2 respectively) on measures of cognitive performance, GMV and white matter integrity in healthy older adults.
Participants and Methods:Data were obtained from the Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative phase 3 (ADNI3) database. Baseline MRI, DTI and cognitive composite scores for memory (ADNI-Mem) and executive function (ADNI-EF) were acquired from 116 healthy controls. Participants were grouped according to APOE allele presence (APOE-e2+ N= 17, APOE-e3e3 N= 64, APOE-e4+ N=35). Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and tract based spatial statistics (TBSS) were used to compare grey matter volume (GMV) and white matter integrity respectively between APOE-e2+ and APOE-e3e3 controls, and again between APOE-e4+ and APOE-e3e3 controls. Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) was used to examine the effects of APOE polymorphism on memory and EF across all APOE groups with covariates of age, sex, education, and cognitive scores were correlated with imaging metrics within groups (Pearson r) to examine associations between cognitive performance and brain structure.
Results:Consistent with findings from Honea et al. (2009), no significant differences were seen across APOE groups, within-groups in MRI metrics, or cognitive performance (p>0.05, corrected for multiple comparisons). Taking a similar approach to Honea and company, nonsignificant, trend-level results were examined (p<0.2, corrected for multiple comparisons) and suggested: 1) Decreased GMV and increased mean diffusivity (MD) were present in APOE-e4+ compared to APOE-e3e3 and 2) Increased GMV and fractional anisotropy (FA) were present in APOE-e2+ compared to APOE-e3e3.
Conclusions:The current study replicated and extended previous findings. Trend-level findings across both the current and replicated study suggests there may be subtle neurostructural differences in healthy aging as a function of APOE-e4 status. The current study additionally found potential subtle differences in GMV and white matter integrity in APOE-e2 carriers at the trend-level, consistent with previous reports of APOE-e2 's protective effects against neurodegeneration. Although these findings should be interpreted with caution, trend-level effects seen in the current study are consistent with previous research and may hold important implications for APOE neuromechanisms.
47 The Impact of COVID-19 Infection on Objective and Subjective Cognitive Functioning: Resilience as a Protective Factor
- Alexa M. Danyluk, Morgan J. Schaeffer, Laurel Caldwell-MacIntyre, Kristina M. Gicas, Theone S. E. Paterson
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- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 44-45
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Objective:
Growing evidence indicates that COVID-19 infection adversely impacts cognitive functioning, with COVID-19 patients demonstrating high rates of objective and subjective cognitive impairments (Daroische et al., 2020; Miskowiak et al., 2021). Given the prevalence and potentially debilitating nature of post-COVID-19 cognitive symptoms, understanding factors that mitigate the impact of COVID-19 infection on cognitive functioning is paramount to developing interventions that facilitate recovery. Resilience, the ability to cope with and grow from challenges, has been associated with improved cognitive performance in healthy adults and linked to decreased perceived cognitive difficulties in post-COVID-19 patients (Connor & Davidson, 2003; Deng et al., 2018; Jung et al., 2021). However, resilience has not yet been examined as a potential attenuator of the relationship between COVID-19 and either perceived or objective cognitive function. This study aims to investigate the role of resilience as a protective factor against experience of cognitive function difficulties in COVID-19 patients by probing the role of resilience as a moderator of the relationship between COVID-19 diagnosis and cognitive functioning (both perceived and objective).
Participants and Methods:Participants (mean age=36.93, 30.10% male) were recruited from British Columbia and Ontario. The sample included 53 adults who had never been diagnosed with COVID-19 and 50 adults diagnosed with symptomatic COVID-19 at least three months prior and not ventilated. Participants completed online questionnaires (n=103) to assess depression (the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale), anxiety (7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale), subjective cognitive functioning (The Subjective Cognitive Decline Questionnaire), and resilience (2-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale). Participants then completed neuropsychological tests (n=82) measuring attention, processing speed, memory, language, visuospatial skills, and executive function via teleconference, with scores averaged to create a global objective cognition score. Moderated multiple regression was employed to assess the impact of resilience on the relationship between COVID-19 diagnosis and both objective and perceived cognition, controlling for gender, ethnicity, income, age, anxiety, and depression.
Results:Average scores in the COVID-19 group exceeded diagnostic cut-offs for clinical depression (M=16.67, SD=10.77) and mild anxiety (M=5.27, SD=4.99), while the control group scored below diagnostic thresholds for depression (M=11.96, SD=9.76) and mild anxiety (M=4.48, SD=5.07). Controlling for sociodemographic and mental health characteristics, COVID-19 diagnosis was not associated with objective global cognitive functioning (b=-.07, se=1.71, p=.624) or subjective cognitive functioning (b=.16, se=1.32, p=.12), nor was resilience associated with objective global cognitive functioning (b=.19, se=1.50, p=.44) or subjective cognitive functioning (b=-.02, se=1.09, p=.89).
Conclusions:Findings indicate that COVID-19 patients may be at risk for depression and anxiety. Results of this study fail to support a relationship between COVID-19 and cognitive functioning beyond the impact of sociodemographic and mental health variables. Thus, the role of resilience as a protective factor against COVID-19 related cognitive difficulties could not be fully explored. However, findings should be considered in the context of study limitations, including a small sample size. Future research should employ larger samples to further examine the relationship between COVID-19 infection and cognition, focusing on mental health characteristics and resilience as potential risk and protective factors.
52 Depressive Symptoms and Subjective Cognitive Decline in Individuals with COVID-19
- Eva Friedman, Petra Legaspi, Katie C Benitah, Samantha J Feldman, Theone S. E. Paterson, Kristina M Gicas
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- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 49-50
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Objective:
Many individuals with COVID-19 develop mild to moderate physical symptoms that can last days to months. In addition to physical symptoms, individuals with COVID-19 have reported depressive symptoms and cognitive decline, posing a long-term threat to mental health and functional outcomes. Few studies have examined the presence of co-occurring depression and subjective cognitive decline in individuals who tested positive for COVID-19. The current study examined whether having COVID-19 is subsequently associated with greater depressive symptoms and subjective cognitive decline when compared to healthy individuals. Our study also examined differential associations between symptoms of depression and subjective cognitive decline between individuals who have and have never had COVID-19.
Participants and Methods:Adults (N = 104; mean age = 37 years, 69% female) were recruited online from Ontario and British Columbia, Canada. Participants were categorized into two groups: (1) persons who tested positive for COVID-19 at least three months prior, had been symptomatic, and had not been ventilated (N = 50); and (2) persons who have never been suspected of having COVID-19 (N = 54). The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and the Subjective Cognitive Decline Questionnaire (SCD-Q) were administered to both groups as part of a larger clinical neuropsychological evaluation. Two separate linear regression analyses were conducted to examine the association of COVID-19 with depressive symptoms and subjective cognitive decline. A moderation analysis was performed to examine whether depressive symptoms were associated with subjective cognitive decline and the extent to which this differed by group (COVID-19 and controls). Participants’ age, self-reported sex, and history of depression were included as covariates.
Results:The first regression model explained 17.2% of the variance in CES-D scores. It was found that the COVID-19 group had significantly higher CES-D scores (ß = .20, p = .03). The second regression model explained 35.9% of the variance in SCD-Q scores. Similar to the previous model, it was found that the COVID-19 group had significantly higher SCD-Q scores compared to healthy controls (ß = .22 p = .01). Lastly, the moderation model indicated that higher CES-D scores were associated with higher SCD-Q scores (ß = .43, p < .01), but there was no statistically significant group X CES-D score interaction.
Conclusions:These findings suggest that individuals who previously experienced a mild to moderate symptomatic COVID-19 infection report greater depressive symptom severity as well as greater subjective cognitive decline. Additionally, while more severe depressive symptoms predicted greater subjective cognitive decline in our sample, the magnitude of this association did not vary between those with and without a previous COVID-19 infection. While the underlying neurobiological and social mechanisms of cognitive difficulties and depressive symptoms in persons who have had COVID-19 have yet to be fully elucidated, our findings highlight treatment for depression and cognitive rehabilitation as potentially useful intervention targets for the post COVID-19 condition.
50 Pain severity as a predictor of verbal fluency functioning after COVID-19 illness
- Cian L Dabrowski, Morgan J Schaeffer, Yael Stevens, Kristina Gicas, Theone Paterson
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- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 47-48
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Objective:
Published results focusing on language assessment in acutely recovered COVID-19 patients have shown communication problems in this group, including significant cognitive-linguistic disruptions in verbal fluency (Cummings, 2022). Extant research also indicates that poorer health-related outcomes, such as reduced physical functioning and quality of life, co-occur with cognitive difficulties post-COVID-19 infection (Mendez et al., 2021; Tabacof et al., 2022). Understanding what factors may worsen the impact of COVID-19 on cognition, and aspects of language function specifically, is necessary to determine who is at greatest risk of adverse outcomes following infection. Our goal was to examine the effect of health-related outcomes on language abilities, specifically verbal fluency, post-COVID-19 infection.
Participants and Methods:37 adults 19 years and older (M age = 38.78, 67.5% female, 92.5%> high school education) were recruited from British Columbia and Ontario, Canada. Participants provided documentation indicating they had had a COVID-19 infection at least 3 months prior to participation. Participants completed a series of online questionnaires, including the Short Form Health Survey (SF-20), to measure aspects of health-related quality of life. The SF-20 measures dimensions of functioning (physical, social, role) and well-being (mental health, health perception, pain). For each parameter except pain, higher scores indicate better functioning/well-being; for pain higher scores indicate greater pain levels. Participants also completed neuropsychological tests, including measures of verbal fluency, via teleconference. Animals and F-A-S total scores were combined to represent verbal fluency (semantic and phonemic, respectively) performance. To assess the impact of health outcomes on verbal fluency performance, hierarchical regression analyses were conducted. The six SF-20 subscale scores were entered as predictors and verbal fluency score (sum) as the outcome. Age and sex (Male/Female) were controlled for in the model.
Results:Age and sex were not significantly related to verbal fluency scores in our sample. After controlling for these demographics, the overall model including SF-20 subscales did not significantly predict fluency performance (F (8, 28) = 1.04, p = .433). However, Pain scores did individually predict verbal fluency performance (B = 5.60, t = 2.53, p = <.05). Unexpectedly, pain ratings were positively associated with fluency scores, such that each increase in pain rating (e.g., “none” to “mild”) was associated with a fluency score increase of 5.60 points (i.e., 5.6 more words stated across administered tasks).
Conclusions:These preliminary findings suggest that participants’ self-reported pain severity was positively associated with verbal fluency task performance in our sample (i.e., greater pain severity predicting better fluency). These findings are contrary to substantial evidence showing the deleterious effects of pain on cognitive functions in other populations (Khera & Rangasamy, 2021). It is possible that findings may be explained by a potential unknown intervening variable not included in our model. This is the first study to our knowledge to examine associations between experienced pain and verbal fluency performance post-COVID-19 infection. It will be important for future work to not only utilize more robust measures of pain experiences and explore more areas of cognition and language, but also to employ larger samples and examine a broader set of covariates.
89 The Effect of Personality Traits on the Development of Predementia Cognitive States: Results from the Einstein Aging Study
- Morgan J Schaeffer, Theone S Paterson
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- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 391-392
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Objective:
Recent research has found associations between the Five Factor Model (FFM) personality traits (Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism) and risk of developing subjective cognitive decline (SCD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and/or dementia. It has therefore been proposed that personality should be incorporated into conceptual models of dementia risk, as personality assessments have utility as readily available, low-cost measures to predict who is at greater risk for developing pathological cognitive decline. The objective of the present study was to explore the relationship between FFM personality traits and predementia cognitive syndromes including SCD, amnestic MCI (aMCI), and non-amnestic MCI (naMCI). The first aim was to compare baseline personality traits between participants who transitioned from healthy cognition or SCD to aMCI vs. naMCI. The second aim was to determine the relationship between FFM personality traits and risk of transition between predementia cognitive states. The third aim was to explore relationships between levels of FFM personality traits and performance on a comprehensive cognitive battery.
Participants and Methods:The participants for this study were 562 (Aim 3; Mean Age = 78.90) older adults from the Einstein Aging Study, 378 of which had at least one follow-up assessment (Aims 1 & 2; Mean Age = 78.60). Baseline levels of FFM personality traits were measured in the EAS using the 50-item International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) version of the NEO-Personality Inventory. Baseline levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms, medical history, performance on a cognitive battery and age sex, and years of education were also collected. A multistate Markov approach was used to model the risk of transition across the four predementia states (cognitively healthy, SCD, aMCI, and naMCI) with each FFM personality trait as covariates.
Results:Regarding Aim 1, Mann-Whitney U tests revealed no differences in levels of FFM personality traits between participants who developed aMCI compared to those who developed naMCI. Regarding Aim 2, the multistate Markov model revealed that higher levels of conscientiousness were protective against developing SCD while higher levels of neuroticism resulted in an increased risk of developing SCD. Further, the model revealed that higher levels of extraversion were protective against developing naMCI. Finally, regarding Aim 3, exploratory correlations revealed many positive associations between levels of openness to experience and performance on neuropsychological tests. Few associations were found for the other FFM personality traits.
Conclusions:Results from this study suggest that premorbid personality traits may play a predictive role in the risk for or protection against specific predementia syndromes. Thus, FFM personality traits may be useful in improving predictions of who is at greatest risk for developing specific predementia syndromes. These personality measures could be used (in addition to other established risk factors for cognitive decline) to enrich clinical trials by targeting individuals who are at greatest risk for developing specific forms of cognitive decline. Such measures may also be useful in diagnostic prediction models for predementia syndromes. These results should be replicated in future studies with larger sample sizes and younger participants.
Mental Health and Social Connectedness Across the Adult Lifespan in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Madeline A. Gregory, Nicole K. Legg, Zachary Senay, Jamie-Lee Barden, Peter Phiri, Shanaya Rathod, Brianna J. Turner, Theone S. E. Paterson
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- Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement / Volume 40 / Issue 4 / December 2021
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 11 October 2021, pp. 554-569
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The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had profound consequences on collective mental health and well-being, and yet, older adults appear better off than younger adults. The current study examined mental health impacts of the pandemic across adult age groups in a large sample (n = 5,320) of Canadians using multiple hierarchical regression analyses. Results suggest older adults are experiencing better mental health and more social connectedness relative to younger adults. Loneliness predicted negative mental health outcomes across all age groups, while the negative association between social support and mental health was only significant at average and high levels of loneliness in the 65–69 age group. Results point towards differential mental health impacts of the pandemic across adult age groups and indicate that loneliness and social support may be key intervention targets during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future research should further examine mechanisms of resiliency among older Canadian adults during the pandemic.
The Impact of Memory Change on Everyday Life Among Older Adults: Association with Cognition and Self-Reported Memory
- Komal T. Shaikh, Erica L. Tatham, Susan Vandermorris, Theone Paterson, Kathryn Stokes, Morris Freedman, Brian Levine, Jill B. Rich, Angela K. Troyer
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- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 27 / Issue 9 / October 2021
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 14 January 2021, pp. 896-904
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Objectives:
Many older adults experience memory changes that can have a meaningful impact on their everyday lives, such as restrictions to lifestyle activities and negative emotions. Older adults also report a variety of positive coping responses that help them manage these changes. The purpose of this study was to determine how objective cognitive performance and self-reported memory are related to the everyday impact of memory change.
Methods:We examined these associations in a sample of 94 older adults (age 60–89, 52% female) along a cognitive ability continuum from normal cognition to mild cognitive impairment.
Results:Correlational analyses revealed that greater restrictions to lifestyle activities (|rs| = .36–.66), more negative emotion associated with memory change (|rs| = .27–.76), and an overall greater burden of memory change on everyday living (|rs| = .28–.61) were associated with poorer objective memory performance and lower self-reported memory ability and satisfaction. Performance on objective measures of executive attention was unrelated to the impact of memory change. Self-reported strategy use was positively related to positive coping with memory change (|r| = .26), but self-reported strategy use was associated with more negative emotions regarding memory change (|r| = .23).
Conclusions:Given the prevalence of memory complaints among older adults, it is important to understand the experience of memory change and its impact on everyday functioning in order to develop services that target the specific needs of this population.