The Mechanism Of Vision-based Cognitive Training For Buffering Mild Cognitive Impairment In The Elderly

Objectives:The intervention on Mild Cognitive Impairment(MCI)shall be crucial for reducing the incidence of dementia.The present study aims at exploring the buffering effects of vision-based cognitive training on the decline of attention and memory of the elderly with MCI,and the transfer effect on executive function,ability of daily living,and emotional regulation ability.Also,to explore the persistence of training effects after three months follow-up and the influence of participants' age and educational level on the training effects.Methods:The present study used the randomized controlled design which recruited 62 older adults with MCI from Nanxing community,Hangzhou City.The participants were randomly assigned into training group(n=3 3)and placebo-controlled group(n=29).The training group received a total 16-session training(8-10weeks,2 sessions/week,40-60min/session).Cognitive functions of participants were measured prior to training(T1),immediately after training(T2),and three months after training(T3)using Montreal Cognitive Assessment(MoCA,for general assessment of cognitive function),Useful Field of View test(UFOV,for spatial attention span),Ability of Daily Living(ADL),Digit Span test(for working memory),Digit Symbol Substitution test(for executive function),Similarity test(for reasoning ability),Verbal Fluency test,and High-Frequency Heart Rate Variability(HF-HRV,for emotional regulation ability).The Covariance Analysis was used to compare the data of two groups in T2 and T3 respectively,by controlling the baseline data.Results:Significant training effects were found on participants' performance on MoCA(F(1.59)=3.65,p=0.06,?2=0.06),UFOV(F(1,59)= 14.92,p<0.01,?2 = 0.06),Digit Span(forward:F(1,59)= 14.92,p<0.01,?2 = 0.06&backward:F(1,59)= 5.29,p<0.05,?2=0.08),Digit Symbol Substitution(F(1,59)= 16.30,p<0.01,?2 = 0.22).After three months follow-up,the significant differences were found in participants'performance on MoCA(F(1,59)= 15.31,p<0.01,?2=0.21),UFOV(F(1,59)= 23.33,p=0.06,?2=0.05),Digit Span(backward:F(1,59)=11.51,o<0.01,?2=0.16),Digit Symbol Substitution(F(1,59)=12.83,p<0.01,?2=0.18),and ADL(F(1,59)= 6.71,p<0.05,?2=0.10).The age of participant would affect the training effects(MoCA:F(3,54)= 2.90,p<0.05,?2 = 0.09),and a significant interaction effect was found between age and training on participants' performance on Digit Span(backward:F(3,54)=4.25,p<0.01,?2=0.19).Conclusions:The present study supported that the vision-based cognitive training can effectively buffer the decline of attention and memory of older adults with MCI.The training effects can transfer to other untrained areas(executive function and ability of daily living)and persist for three months.The age of participant was found negatively associated with the training gains.No training effect was found on the emotional regulation ability of MCI older adults.