Portions of this research were presented as a poster presentation at the 60th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Gerontological Society of America, November 16–20, 2007, San Francisco, CA; 36th Annual Scientific Meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, February 6–9, 2008, Waikoloa, HI; Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, April 12–19, 2008, Chicago, IL; 2008 American Geriatrics Society Annual Scientific Meeting (Encore), April 30–May 5, 2008, Washington, DC; and 6th International Conference of the International Society for Gerotechnology, June 4–6, 2008, Pisa, Italy.
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A Cognitive Training Program Based on Principles of Brain Plasticity: Results from the Improvement in Memory with Plasticity-based Adaptive Cognitive Training (IMPACT) Study
Article first published online: 9 FEB 2009
DOI: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2008.02167.x
© 2009, Copyright the Authors. Journal compilation © 2009, The American Geriatrics Society
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How to Cite
Smith, G. E., Housen, P., Yaffe, K., Ruff, R., Kennison, R. F., Mahncke, H. W. and Zelinski, E. M. (2009), A Cognitive Training Program Based on Principles of Brain Plasticity: Results from the Improvement in Memory with Plasticity-based Adaptive Cognitive Training (IMPACT) Study. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 57: 594–603. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2008.02167.x
Publication History
- Issue published online: 2 APR 2009
- Article first published online: 9 FEB 2009
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Keywords:
- clinical trial;
- cognitive decline;
- computerized cognitive training;
- participant-reported outcomes;
- brain plasticity
OBJECTIVES: To investigate the efficacy of a novel brain plasticity–based computerized cognitive training program in older adults and to evaluate the effect on untrained measures of memory and attention and participant-reported outcomes.
DESIGN: Multisite randomized controlled double-blind trial with two treatment groups.
SETTING: Communities in northern and southern California and Minnesota.
PARTICIPANTS: Community-dwelling adults aged 65 and older (N=487) without a diagnosis of clinically significant cognitive impairment.
INTERVENTION: Participants were randomized to receive a broadly-available brain plasticity–based computerized cognitive training program (intervention) or a novelty- and intensity-matched general cognitive stimulation program modeling treatment as usual (active control). Duration of training was 1 hour per day, 5 days per week, for 8 weeks, for a total of 40 hours.
MEASUREMENTS: The primary outcome was a composite score calculated from six subtests of the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status that use the auditory modality (RBANS Auditory Memory/Attention). Secondary measures were derived from performance on the experimental program, standardized neuropsychological assessments of memory and attention, and participant-reported outcomes.
RESULTS: RBANS Auditory Memory/Attention improvement was significantly greater (P=.02) in the experimental group (3.9 points, 95% confidence interval (CI)=2.7–5.1) than in the control group (1.8 points, 95% CI=0.6–3.0). Multiple secondary measures of memory and attention showed significantly greater improvements in the experimental group (word list total score, word list delayed recall, digits backwards, letter–number sequencing; P<.05), as did the participant-reported outcome measure (P=.001). No advantage for the experimental group was seen in narrative memory.
CONCLUSION: The experimental program improved generalized measures of memory and attention more than an active control program.