[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1162/nol_a_00081.].
View Article and Find Full Text PDFListening to spoken language engages domain-general multiple demand (MD; frontoparietal) regions of the human brain, in addition to domain-selective (frontotemporal) language regions, particularly when comprehension is challenging. However, there is limited evidence that the MD network makes a functional contribution to core aspects of understanding language. In a behavioural study of volunteers ( = 19) with chronic brain lesions, but without aphasia, we assessed the causal role of these networks in perceiving, comprehending, and adapting to spoken sentences made more challenging by acoustic-degradation or lexico-semantic ambiguity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStudies of "healthy" cognitive aging often focus on a limited set of measures that decline with age. The current study argues that defining and supporting healthy cognition requires understanding diverse cognitive performance across the lifespan. Data from the Cambridge Centre for Aging and Neuroscience (Cam-CAN) cohort was examined across a range of cognitive domains.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Cognitive disturbances occur early in Huntington's disease (HD) and place a significant burden on the lives of patients and family members. Whilst these impairments are typically attributed to deterioration of the frontal-striatal pathways, accumulating evidence suggests that hippocampal dysfunction may also contribute to such impairments. Here, we employ a novel spatial memory task that has previously been shown to elicit impairments in individuals with focal hippocampal lesions, as a means to further investigate the role of hippocampal dysfunction in HD.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFocal lesions can affect connectivity between distal brain regions (connectional diaschisis) and impact the graph-theoretic properties of major brain networks (connectomic diaschisis). Given its unique anatomy and diverse range of functions, the hippocampus has been claimed to be a critical "hub" in brain networks. We investigated the effects of hippocampal lesions on structural and functional connectivity in six patients with amnesia, using a range of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analyses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
September 2016
Memory problems are among the most common complaints as people grow older. Using structural equation modeling of commensurate scores of anterograde memory from a large (N = 315), population-derived sample (www.cam-can.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAging Ment Health
September 2008
Objectives: This study investigates the psychological and physiological impact of caring for a partner with fronto-temporal dementia (FTD). Carers were expected to exhibit greater stress and poorer psychological well-being in comparison with non-carers, and suppressed mucosal immunity.
Method: Twenty-five carers and 36 non-carers completed standardised psychological assessments of perceived stress, psychological well-being, coping and social support.
Int J Geriatr Psychiatry
April 2008
Background: The Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE) is a simple diagnostic tool bridging the gap between the very brief Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE) and much longer test batteries used by neuropsychologists which has proven extremely popular internationally.
Objective: We aimed to assess the ability of the ACE to differentiate semantic dementia (SD) from Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Methods: The ACE was administered to three groups: SD patients (n = 40) and two separate groups of AD patients (n = 40 in each), matched for overall ACE or MMSE score.
Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord
January 2007
Objectives: Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), the second commonest degenerative cause of dementia under the age of 65, often presents with striking changes in behaviour and personality in association with frontal lobe atrophy. Based on the behavioural changes observed in FTD, it is commonly assumed that the orbitofrontal cortex is the earliest and most severely affected frontal sub-region. However, evidence to support this assumption has to date been largely lacking.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDement Geriatr Cogn Disord
October 2006
Ten patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) underwent extensive neuropsychological evaluation at 12-monthly intervals for a minimum of 6 years. All 10 patients declined and 5 have now died. The onset of dementia, as defined by a fall in global cognitive function (MMSE <24) or activities of daily living (Clinical Dementia Rating Scale; CDR) ranged from 1 to 8 years with generally good concordance between these measures.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To examine the contribution of the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE), neuropsychological assessment, and a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based temporal lobe rating scale to the prediction of which patients with questionable dementia will progress to Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Methods: Fifty subjects (19 early AD, 31 questionable dementia [QD]) underwent the ACE, a neuropsychological evaluation, and a volumetric MRI. The degree of atrophy of hippocampal, parahippocampal, and other temporal lobe structures was assessed using a validated visual rating scale.
A key aspect of social cognition is the ability to infer other people's mental states, thoughts and feelings; referred to as 'theory of mind' (ToM). We tested the hypothesis that the changes in personality and behaviour seen in frontal variant frontotemporal dementia (fvFTD) may reflect impairment in this cognitive domain. Tests of ToM, executive and general neuropsychological ability were given to 19 fvFTD patients, a comparison group of Alzheimer's disease patients (n = 12) and matched healthy controls (n = 16).
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