• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.548-556
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• 2016

Cognitive-linguistic changes that normally accompany aging are often simply an annoyance, but in some instances they may herald a more perilous course of decline to a state of neurological disease. This study investigated the correlation between subjective and objective tests on cognitive-linguistic abilities in older adults and the predictors of objective performances. Healthy elders over 65 years of age (n=63) and their informants (n=63) completed the subjective and objective cognitive-linguistic tests (ISCOLE and CAPTBI) from July of 2015 to February of 2016. The main findings were as follows: performance on the self-report test was not significantly different from that on the informant-report test. Additionally, eight domains in older adults group and 15 domains in the informants group were significantly associated with performance on the objective test. Finally, language on the informant-report test was a predictor of several abilities including problem solving and memory on the informant-report test predicted executive function and language. The present study demonstrates that two groups have significant differences in correlation between subjective and objective tests on the cognitive-linguistic abilities, and there are more relevant domains in rating by informants. These findings have implications for the use of cognitive-linguistic evaluation and preventive intervention in clinical settings.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.85 no.1
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• pp.184-196
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• 2024

Purpose We investigated potentially promising imaging findings and their combinations in the evaluation of cognitive decline. Materials and Methods This retrospective study included 138 patients with subjective cognitive impairments, who underwent brain MRI. We classified the same group of patients into Alzheimer's disease (AD) and non-AD groups, based on the neuropsychiatric evaluation. We analyzed imaging findings, including white matter hyperintensity (WMH) and cerebral microbleeds (CMBs), using the Kruskal-Wallis test for group comparison, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis for assessing the diagnostic performance of imaging findings. Results CMBs in the lobar or deep locations demonstrated higher prevalence in the patients with AD compared to those in the non-AD group. The presence of lobar CMBs combined with periventricular WMH (area under the ROC curve [AUC] = 0.702 [95% confidence interval: 0.599-0.806], p < 0.001) showed the highest performance in differentiation of AD from non-AD group. Conclusion Combinations of imaging findings can serve as useful additive diagnostic tools in the assessment of cognitive decline.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.12 no.11
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• pp.457-466
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• 2021

This study sought to identify the effectiveness of training programs by developing mobile app-based training programs to enhance memory, attention, and language function, which is known to be vulnerable to menopause women. It was conducted on 40 Climacteric woman between 40 to 60 years complaining about cognitive function decline. The mobile app-based cognitive training was an 8 week program. There were a total of 24 sessions and each session took 20-30 minutes, three times per week. The survey was carried out including a baseline study pre and post intervention study. The research variables were objective cognitive function (overall cognitive function, memory, attention, and language function), subjective cognitive function and quality of life. The cognitive training program showed a significant increase in overall cognitive function(t=-8.688, p<.001), memory(t=-4.765, p<.001), attention : number of correct answers(t=-7.293, p<.001), language high frequency response speed(Z=-2.179, p=.036), language low frequency response speed(Z=-2.737, p=.009) and quality of life (t=-3.358, p=.002). However, there was no significant difference in the scores for subjective cognitive function. The cognitive training program was found to be an effective intervention for improving the cognitive function of Climacteric women. It could be used as a cognitive intervention tool that is accessible at home without expert help.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.402-411
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• 2023

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a cognitive enhancement program combined Silbot on cognitive function, depression, and dementia prevention behavior in the elderly complaining of subjective memory decline. The subjects were 170 elderly people living in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, and the study was performed at a welfare center. A total of 20 sessions program using Silbot and physical activity was developed and applied, and were evaluated using the Korean version of Montreal Cognitive Assessment (K-MoCA), Geriatric depression Scale(GDS) , and Dementia Prevention Behavior before and after intervention. As a result of the study, the cognitive enhancement program combined Silbot showed statistically significant changes in cognitive function (t=-4.49, p<.001) and depression (t=2.58, p=.023) in the elderly. Therefore, it is expected that the cognitive enhancement program using Silbot will be a useful program that can enhance the cognitive function of the elderly and reduce depression.

• Dementia and Neurocognitive Disorders
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.59-70
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• 2022

Background and Purpose: Neurofilament light chain (NfL) has been considered as a biomarker for neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease (AD). We measured plasma NfL levels in older adults with cognitive complaints and evaluated their clinical usefulness in AD. Methods: Plasma levels of NfL, measured by using the single molecule array method, were acquired in a total of 113 subjects consisting of subjective cognitive decline (SCD; n=14), mild cognitive impairment (MCI; n=37), or dementia of Alzheimer type (DAT; n=62). Plasma NfL level was compared among three groups, and its association with cognitive and functional status was also analyzed. Results: After adjusting for age, plasma NfL level was higher in subjects with DAT (65.98±84.96 pg/mL), compared to in subjects with SCD (16.90±2.54 pg/mL) or MCI (25.53±10.42 pg/mL, p=0.004). NfL levels were correlated with scores of the mini-mental state examination (r=-0.242, p=0.021), clinical dementia rating (CDR) (r=0.291, p=0.005), or CDR-sum of boxes (r=0.276, p=0.008). Just for participants who performed amyloid positron emission tomography (PET), the levels were different between subjects with PET (-) (n=17, 25.95±13.25 pg/mL) and PET (+) (n=16, 63.65±81.90 pg/mL, p=0.010). Additionally, plasma NfL levels were different between vascular dementia and vascular MCI, and between Parkinson's disease- dementia and no dementia. Conclusions: This pilot study shows that in subjects with DAT, plasma NfL levels increase. Plasma NfL level correlated with cognitive and functional status. Further longitudinal studies may help to apply the plasma NfL levels to AD, as a potential biomarker for the diagnosis and predicting progression.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.619-624
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• 2010

The traffic accidents of the aged are increasing because old people generally experience a decline of physical functions and judgment but their dependence on automobiles increases. In order to investigate the older drivers' response to traffic signs and surrounding environment according to changing driving brightness, this study measured the visual cognitive behavior, driving behavior, and subjective evaluation while the driving brightness was changed using a driving simulator. Furthermore, the drivers who recognized traffic signs and those who did not were compared. As a result, it was found that some older drivers had declined ability of cognition, some failed to adapt to rapid brightness change even if sufficient attention was given to traffic sign, and some could not safely control the vehicle when approaching intersections. Therefore, the development of support systems for aged drivers in traffic environment is necessary in the future.

• 한국노년학
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.729-746
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• 2020

For the development and better use of information and communication technology(ICT) for promoting health and quality of life in older people, it is important to understand personal factors associated with ICT use. The aims of this study were to describe the pattern of ICT use according to health characteristics of elderly and to investigate significant factors related to ICT use among three age groups. The data of 2017 National Survey of Older Koreans was used for analysis and 10,058 of older adults aged 65 and over were included for study participants. As results, first, the young old(65~74) used more functions of ICT than the middle-old(75~84) and the old-old(85 and over). Second, ICT was more used among older people with good conditions in chronic disease, subjective health, cognition, depression, vision, hearing, walking and IADL. Third, higher prevalence of ICT use was significantly associated with age, education, household income, subjective health, depression, cognitive function, vision limitation and walking limitation. Fourth, factors influencing the use of ICT were a little different among three age groups. For the young-old(65~74), subjective health, depression, cognitive decline, walking limitation, and IADL disability were significant factors affecting on ICT use. For the middle-old(75-84), subjective health, depression, cognitive decline, vision, hearing, and walking limitation were related with their ICT use. For the old-old(85 and over), only cognitive function and depression were associated with their ICT use. Based on these results, this study suggested the need to consider multiple health conditions for developing and using ICT for older adults.

• Dementia and Neurocognitive Disorders
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2024

Background and Purpose: Voice, reflecting cerebral functions, holds potential for analyzing and understanding brain function, especially in the context of cognitive impairment (CI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study used voice data to distinguish between normal cognition and CI or Alzheimer's disease dementia (ADD). Methods: This study enrolled 3 groups of subjects: 1) 52 subjects with subjective cognitive decline; 2) 110 subjects with mild CI; and 3) 59 subjects with ADD. Voice features were extracted using Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients and Chroma. Results: A deep neural network (DNN) model showed promising performance, with an accuracy of roughly 81% in 10 trials in predicting ADD, which increased to an average value of about 82.0%±1.6% when evaluated against unseen test dataset. Conclusions: Although results did not demonstrate the level of accuracy necessary for a definitive clinical tool, they provided a compelling proof-of-concept for the potential use of voice data in cognitive status assessment. DNN algorithms using voice offer a promising approach to early detection of AD. They could improve the accuracy and accessibility of diagnosis, ultimately leading to better outcomes for patients.

• Korean Journal of Cognitive Science
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.245-265
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• 2017

Recently, studies on cognitive control revealed that the optimal level of control is determined on the basis of reward and cost. The value of reward can be subjective and therefore, the optimal control strength can vary accordingly. The inconsistent effect of aging on cognitive control can be the result of flexible adjustment of control signal strength made by the older subjects. In other words, the elderly people maintains the ability to set the optimal level of control, which is known as the function of the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex. On the other hand, the age-related decline in cognitive control is obvious in rule maintenance and inhibition, which has to do with the function of lateral prefrontal cortex. In this study, we had young and old adults perform go-no go task and compared the behavioral and neural results for different reward conditions. Both age groups showed the best performance and the largest ERN amplitude when the reward was most appealing to them. And there was no age effect in ERN amplitude even though older adults' d' and accuracy was inferior to younger participants. These findings suggest that the effect aging on different cognitive control processes can be asymmetric.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.833-845
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• 2021

Parkinson's syndrome is a degenerative brain disease that presents characteristic motor symptoms of tremor, rigidity, and gait disturbance. In addition to these motor symptoms, Parkinson's syndrome also presents non-motor symptoms (NMSs) such as sleep disturbance and cognitive decline. NMSs reduce patient's quality of life and psychosocial functioning and cause economic burden on the patient, so appropriate evaluation and treatment are required. Lewy body dementia is one of the several diseases belonging to Parkinson's syndrome. Its symptoms such as cognitive function, memory impairment, and hallucinations occur with Parkinsonism. Although drug therapy is being used with drug treatment to treat non-motor symptoms, it has limitations such as side effects, which stimulated interest in other complementary treatment methods such as oriental medicine treatment, dance, and yoga. The patient in this case complained of tremor in the right upper extremity, muscle hypertension and pain, and persistent vision, memory, and cognitive decline. The patient was diagnosed with probable Lewy body dementia. The patient was hospitalized for 4 months and received acupuncture and herbal medicines. After treatment, the patient's NMS scale scores decreased from 90 to 63, and the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale scores (summed I, II, and III) decreased from 17 points to 8 points. The Beck Depression Inventory score decreased from 22 points to 13 points. In addition, the patient's subjective evaluation revealed improvement. In this case, a patient diagnosed with probable Lewy body dementia who did not respond to the standard treatment and did not want to take medications showed improvement in not only motor symptoms but also NMSs after integrative Korean medicine treatment.