Cognitive Aging and Training With Video-games

Study Description

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Brief Summary:

The ageing of the population will inevitably lead to a growing number of older people living alone and in need of care. Given the high cost of geriatric care, a critical research issue is exploring ways to improve or maintain cognitive and functional status in old age. Unfortunately, it has been shown that training those specific cognitive processes most sensitive to ageing (such as speed of processing or working memory), produces only limited beneficial effects. However, research also suggests that factors such as cognitive engagement, physical activity and social context may act as more general modulators of cognitive decline. This project is a longitudinal study with experimental and control groups. It is inspired from the engagement model of cognitive optimization suggesting that a lifestyle marked by social and intellectual engagement may mitigate age-related declines on cognitive functioning. It uses new cutting-edge information computing technology (ICT) solutions to improve or simply maintain cognitive functions in the elderly. This research investigates how the treatment reduces the effects of cognitive age-related decline in executive control processes and episodic (explicit) memory using behavioral and imaging measures. The results will provide significant knowledge on the potential of new ICT technologies to delay, compensate, and even prevent common chronic problems experienced by the elderly population. The hypothesis is that cognitive training with video-games through ICT solutions will promote brain and mental health and independence. Ultimately, the objective is to contribute to the understanding of factors that help avoiding the (personal and economic) consequences of long-term care in geriatric institutions.

Condition or disease	Intervention/treatment	Phase
Aging; Healthy	Other: Non-action video game training	Not Applicable

Detailed Description:

The aim of the present project was to investigate whether older adults could benefit from brain training with video games in a series of cognitive tasks. Two groups of healthy older adults participated in the study. The experimental group received 20 1-hr video game training sessions using a commercially available brain-training package (Lumosity) involving problem solving, mental calculation, working memory and attention tasks. The control group did not practice this package and, instead, attended meetings with the other members of the study several times along the course of the study. Both groups were evaluated before and after the training (experimental group) or a similar period of time (control group) using different cognitive tasks in a 2 (Group: Experimental, control) x 2 (Time os assessment: Pre, post) mixed factorial design.

Study Design

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Study Type :	Interventional (Clinical Trial)
Actual Enrollment :	30 participants
Allocation:	Randomized
Intervention Model:	Parallel Assignment
Masking:	Single (Participant)
Primary Purpose:	Prevention
Official Title:	Compensation Factors of Cognitive Ageing: Using Computer Technology to Reduce Cognitive Decline in Ageing
Study Start Date :	January 2011
Actual Primary Completion Date :	June 2013
Actual Study Completion Date :	September 2013

Arms and Interventions

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Arm	Intervention/treatment
Experimental: Non-action video game training; 20 1-hour sessions of non-action video game training	Other: Non-action video game training; Based on cognitive training Lumosity
No Intervention: Control; Participants in the control group did not receive non-action video game training

Outcome Measures

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Primary Outcome Measures :

1. Neuropsychological testing [ Time Frame: Baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks ]
   Improvement in Neuropsychological tests after training
2. Oddball task [ Time Frame: Baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks ]
   Improvement in attention after training
3. Wisconsin task [ Time Frame: Baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks ]
   Improvement in executive functions
4. Speed of processing task [ Time Frame: Baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks ]
   Improvement in processing speed after training
5. Spatial working memory (WM) [ Time Frame: Baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks ]
   Improvement in spatial working memory

Secondary Outcome Measures :

1. Efficacy of non-action video game training [ Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks ]
   Efficacy of training: Better performance in the trained video games from first training session to the last training session (from 1 to 20 sessions)

Eligibility Criteria

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Ages Eligible for Study:	57 Years to 85 Years (Adult, Senior)
Sexes Eligible for Study:	All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:	Yes

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score 26 or greater
• Global Deterioration Scale (GDS) score less than 5
• Independent living
• Normal or correct to normal vision and hearing

Exclusion Criteria:

• Diagnosis of dementia
• Planned move from study area
• Inability to complete study activities
• Scores lower than inclusion criteria requirements Communication problems.

Contacts and Locations

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Locations

Spain
Facultad de Psicología de la UNED
Madrid, Spain, 28040

Sponsors and Collaborators

Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia

Investigators

Principal Investigator:	Soledad Ballesteros, PhD	UNED

More Information

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Additional Information:

Web of the Research Group on Studies on Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases 

Web of the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia 

Lumosity website 

PlosOne website 

Frontiers website 

Publications automatically indexed to this study by ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier (NCT Number):

Ballesteros S, Mayas J, Prieto A, Toril P, Pita C, Laura Pde L, Reales JM, Waterworth JA. A randomized controlled trial of brain training with non-action video games in older adults: results of the 3-month follow-up. Front Aging Neurosci. 2015 Apr 14;7:45. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2015.00045. eCollection 2015.

Mayas J, Parmentier FB, Andrés P, Ballesteros S. Plasticity of attentional functions in older adults after non-action video game training: a randomized controlled trial. PLoS One. 2014 Mar 19;9(3):e92269. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0092269. eCollection 2014.

Responsible Party:	Soledad Ballesteros, Professor Dr., Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:	NCT02007616 History of Changes
Other Study ID Numbers:	PSI2010-21609-C02-01
First Posted:	December 11, 2013
Last Update Posted:	May 28, 2015
Last Verified:	May 2015

Keywords provided by Soledad Ballesteros, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia:

Cognitive aging; Video games training; Attention; Memory	Wellbeing; Speed of processing; Executive functions