J Clin Neurol.  2012 Sep;8(3):190-197. 10.3988/jcn.2012.8.3.190.

The Effect of Cognitive Training in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Early Alzheimer's Disease: A Preliminary Study

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Neurology, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea. seonghye@inha.ac.kr
  • 2Department of Psychiatry, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital Healthcare System Gangnam Center, Seoul, Korea.
  • 3Department of Neurology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
  • 4Clinical Research Institute, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea.
  • 5Clinical Trial Center, Inha University Hospital, Incheon, Korea.

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The objective of this study was to determine the benefits of cognitive training in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and those with early Alzheimer's disease (AD).
METHODS
Eleven patients with aMCI and nine with early AD (stage 4 on the Global Deterioration Scale) participated in this study. Six participants with aMCI and six with AD were allocated to the cognitive training group, while five participants with aMCI and three with AD were allocated to a wait-list control group. Multicomponent cognitive training was administered in 18 weekly, individual sessions. Outcome measures were undertaken at baseline, and at 2 weeks and 3 months of follow-up.
RESULTS
In the trained MCI group, there were significant improvements in the delayed-recall scores on the Seoul Verbal Learning Test at both the 2-week and 3-month follow-ups compared with baseline (baseline, 1.6+/-1.5; 2 weeks, 4.4+/-1.5, p=0.04; 3 months, 4.6+/-2.3, p=0.04). The phonemic fluency scores (1.0+/-0.8 vs. 5.0+/-1.8, p=0.07) and Korean Mini-Mental State Examination scores (18.8+/-0.5 vs. 23.8+/-2.2, p=0.07) also showed a tendency toward improvement at the 2-week follow-up compared to baseline in the trained AD group.
CONCLUSIONS
This study provides evidence of the effectiveness of cognitive training in aMCI and early AD. The efficacy of cognitive training programs remains to be verified in studies with larger samples and a randomized design.

Keyword

Alzheimer's disease; cognitive therapy; memory; mild cognitive impairment; training

MeSH Terms

Alzheimer Disease
Cognitive Therapy
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Memory
Mild Cognitive Impairment
Outcome Assessment (Health Care)
Verbal Learning

Figure

  • Fig. 1 Changes in the delayed recall scores on the Seoul Verbal Learning Test (SVLT) (A) and Korean Mini-Mental State Examination (K-MMSE) (B). A: In the trained mild cognitive impairment (MCI) group (♦), the delayed recall scores on the SVLT showed a significant improvement at both the 2-week and 3-month follow-ups compared to the baseline score (1.6±1.5 vs. 4.4±1.5, p=0.04; 1.6±1.5 vs. 4.6±2.3, p=0.04). B: The K-MMSE score showed a tendency to improve at the 2-week follow-up compared to baseline in the trained Alzheimer's disease (AD) group (○; 18.8±0.5 vs. 23.8±2.2, p=0.07).


Cited by  1 articles

Effect of Paper-Based Cognitive Training in Early Stage of Alzheimer's Dementia
Min Ju Kang, So Min Kim, Seo Eun Han, Ji Hyun Bae, Woo Jin Yu, Min Young Park, Seongsu Ku, YoungSoon Yang
Dement Neurocogn Disord. 2019;18(2):62-68.    doi: 10.12779/dnd.2019.18.2.62.


Reference

1. Petersen RC, Doody R, Kurz A, Mohs RC, Morris JC, Rabins PV, et al. Current concepts in mild cognitive impairment. Arch Neurol. 2001. 58:1985–1992.
Article
2. Busse A, Hensel A, Gühne U, Angermeyer MC, Riedel-Heller SG. Mild cognitive impairment: long-term course of four clinical subtypes. Neurology. 2006. 67:2176–2185.
Article
3. Petersen RC, Thomas RG, Grundman M, Bennett D, Doody R, Ferris S, et al. Vitamin E and donepezil for the treatment of mild cognitive impairment. N Engl J Med. 2005. 352:2379–2388.
Article
4. Zhang D, Wang Y, Zhou L, Yuan H, Shen D. Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. Multimodal classification of Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment. Neuroimage. 2011. 55:856–867.
Article
5. Doody RS, Ferris SH, Salloway S, Sun Y, Goldman R, Watkins WE, et al. Donepezil treatment of patients with MCI: a 48-week randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Neurology. 2009. 72:1555–1561.
Article
6. Kalbe E, Salmon E, Perani D, Holthoff V, Sorbi S, Elsner A, et al. Anosognosia in very mild Alzheimer's disease but not in mild cognitive impairment. Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2005. 19:349–356.
Article
7. Akhtar S, Moulin CJ, Bowie PC. Are people with mild cognitive impairment aware of the benefits of errorless learning? Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2006. 16:329–346.
Article
8. Jean L, Bergeron ME, Thivierge S, Simard M. Cognitive intervention programs for individuals with mild cognitive impairment: systematic review of the literature. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2010. 18:281–296.
Article
9. Unverzagt FW, Kasten L, Johnson KE, Rebok GW, Marsiske M, Koepke KM, et al. Effect of memory impairment on training outcomes in ACTIVE. J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2007. 13:953–960.
Article
10. Rapp S, Brenes G, Marsh AP. Memory enhancement training for older adults with mild cognitive impairment: a preliminary study. Aging Ment Health. 2002. 6:5–11.
Article
11. Rozzini L, Costardi D, Chilovi BV, Franzoni S, Trabucchi M, Padovani A. Efficacy of cognitive rehabilitation in patients with mild cognitive impairment treated with cholinesterase inhibitors. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2007. 22:356–360.
Article
12. Talassi E, Guerreschi M, Feriani M, Fedi V, Bianchetti A, Trabucchi M. Effectiveness of a cognitive rehabilitation program in mild dementia (MD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI): a case control study. Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2007. 44:Suppl 1. 391–399.
Article
13. Troyer AK, Murphy KJ, Anderson ND, Moscovitch M, Craik FI. Changing everyday memory behaviour in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a randomised controlled trial. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2008. 18:65–88.
Article
14. Kinsella GJ, Mullaly E, Rand E, Ong B, Burton C, Price S, et al. Early intervention for mild cognitive impairment: a randomised controlled trial. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2009. 80:730–736.
Article
15. Kurz A, Pohl C, Ramsenthaler M, Sorg C. Cognitive rehabilitation in patients with mild cognitive impairment. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2009. 24:163–168.
Article
16. Belleville S, Gilbert B, Fontaine F, Gagnon L, Ménard E, Gauthier S. Improvement of episodic memory in persons with mild cognitive impairment and healthy older adults: evidence from a cognitive intervention program. Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2006. 22:486–499.
Article
17. Wenisch E, Cantegreil-Kallen I, De Rotrou J, Garrigue P, Moulin F, Batouche F, et al. Cognitive stimulation intervention for elders with mild cognitive impairment compared with normal aged subjects: preliminary results. Aging Clin Exp Res. 2007. 19:316–322.
Article
18. Stott J, Spector A. A review of the effectiveness of memory interventions in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Int Psychogeriatr. 2011. 23:526–538.
Article
19. Clare L, Woods RT, Moniz Cook ED, Orrell M, Spector A. Cognitive rehabilitation and cognitive training for early-stage Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2003. (4):CD003260.
Article
20. Sitzer DI, Twamley EW, Jeste DV. Cognitive training in Alzheimer's disease: a meta-analysis of the literature. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2006. 114:75–90.
Article
21. Rami L, Molinuevo JL, Sanchez-Valle R, Bosch B, Villar A. Screening for amnestic mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's disease with M@T (Memory Alteration Test) in the primary care population. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2007. 22:294–304.
Article
22. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 1994. 4th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
23. McKhann G, Drachman D, Folstein M, Katzman R, Price D, Stadlan EM. Clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease: report of the NINCDS-ADRDA Work Group under the auspices of Department of Health and Human Services Task Force on Alzheimer's Disease. Neurology. 1984. 34:939–944.
Article
24. Choi SH, Na DL, Lee BH, Hahm DS, Jeong JH, Jeong Y, et al. The validity of the Korean version of Global Deterioration Scale. J Korean Neurol Assoc. 2002. 20:612–617.
25. Ahn HJ, Chin J, Park A, Lee BH, Suh MK, Seo SW, et al. Seoul Neuropsychological Screening Battery-dementia version (SNSB-D): a useful tool for assessing and monitoring cognitive impairments in dementia patients. J Korean Med Sci. 2010. 25:1071–1076.
Article
26. Kang YW. A normative study of the Korean-Mini Mental State Examination (K-MMSE) in the elderly. Korean J Psychol Gen. 2006. 25:1–12.
27. Craik FI, Winocur G, Palmer H, Binns MA, Edwards M, Bridges K, et al. Cognitive rehabilitation in the elderly: effects on memory. J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2007. 13:132–142.
Article
28. Shin HY. A preliminary study on the Korean version of quality of life-Alzheimer's disease (QOL-AD) scale in community-dwelling elderly with dementia. J Prev Med Public Health. 2006. 39:243–248.
29. Bae JN, Cho MJ. Development of the Korean version of the Geriatric Depression Scale and its short form among elderly psychiatric patients. J Psychosom Res. 2004. 57:297–305.
Article
30. Collie A, Maruff P. The neuropsychology of preclinical Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2000. 24:365–374.
Article
31. Jefferson AL, Byerly LK, Vanderhill S, Lambe S, Wong S, Ozonoff A, et al. Characterization of activities of daily living in individuals with mild cognitive impairment. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2008. 16:375–383.
Article
32. Olazarán J, Muñiz R, Reisberg B, Peña-Casanova J, del Ser T, Cruz-Jentoft AJ, et al. Benefits of cognitive-motor intervention in MCI and mild to moderate Alzheimer disease. Neurology. 2004. 63:2348–2353.
Article
Full Text Links
  • JCN
Actions
Cited
CITED
export Copy
Close
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
Similar articles
Copyright © 2024 by Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors. All rights reserved.     E-mail: koreamed@kamje.or.kr