Combined exercise and cognitive training intervention in normal aging

描述（由申请人提供）：这是一项试点研究，旨在测试健康老年人年龄相关认知能力下降的候选干预措施。流行病学证据表明，认知训练和体育锻炼对老年人的认知和健康有积极的影响。动物实验的证据表明，丰富的环境和有氧运动可以诱导神经可塑性的变化。我们建议测试认知干预和有氧运动的组合。先前对老年人的认知干预取得了一些成功，但效果相对较小。我们假设有氧运动对大脑的影响可以增强我们提出的认知干预的益处，从而产生更大的效应，这在之前的干预研究中已经看到了。迄今为止，认知干预研究中的一个常见问题是训练不能推广到其他任务。我们提出的认知干预是在太空堡垒游戏的背景下使用重点改变训练，这是一款专门为研究目的而开发的复杂且要求高的电子游戏。重点变化训练方法已被证明可以增强年轻人的注意力控制和执行功能。由于正常的衰老与控制过程和执行功能的下降有关，我们假设增强这些功能将导致许多任务和日常活动的普遍改善。此外，先前对年轻人和老年人的研究都发现，重点变化训练方法与训练转移到其他任务有关。90名老年人将被随机分为三个研究组：对照组、单独进行太空堡垒训练和在演习中进行太空堡垒训练。正式的干预期将在实验室和健身中心进行，为期三个月，包括前测试和后测试。为了测试长期维持治疗的可行性，完成这一额外培训期的参与者将在家中继续他们各自的培训计划一年。将对遵守情况进行监测，并对长期培训的效果进行评估。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This is a pilot study to test a candidate intervention for age-related cognitive decline in healthy older individuals. Epidemiologic evidence suggests that cognitive training and physical exercise have positive effects on cognition and healthy elderly individuals. Evidence from animal studies indicate that enriched environment and aerobic exercise can induce changes that increase neural plasticity. We propose to test a combination of a cognitive intervention and aerobic exercise. There has been some success with previous cognitive interventions in elderly individuals, but effect sizes have been relatively small. We hypothesize that the effects of aerobic exercise on the brain can potentiate the benefit of our proposed cognitive intervention, resulting in larger effect sizes and previously seen in intervention studies. A common problem in cognitive intervention studies to date is the failure of the training to generalize to other tasks. Our proposed cognitive intervention uses emphasis change training in the context of the space fortress game, a complex and demanding video game that was specifically developed for research purposes. The emphasis change training approach has been shown to enhance attentional control and executive functions in younger individuals. Because normal aging is associated with declines in control processes and executive function, we hypothesize that enhancing these functions will result in generalized improvement across many tasks and day-to-day activities. Also, previous studies in both young and old individuals have found that the emphasis change training approach is associated with transfer of training to other tasks. Ninety elders will be randomized into three study arms: control, space fortress training alone, and space fortress training within the exercise. The formal intervention period, conducted in the laboratory and fitness center, will be three months, with pre- and post-testing. In order to test the feasibility of maintenance of treatment over long periods of time, participants completing this additional training period will continue their respective training program at home for one year. Compliance will be monitored and the efficacy of this long- term training will be assessed. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Evidence from animal and human studies strongly suggests that aerobic exercise and cognitive stimulation have a beneficial effect on cognition, but intervention studies in healthy elders have not shown large improvements, and these improvements have not transferred to day-to-day activities. The goal of the proposed study is to evaluate the benefit of a combination of aerobic exercise and a cognitive intervention designed to enhance executive control processes. This combined intervention may provide enhanced benefits, and the targeted cognitive functions may enable generalization of training to many other tasks and activities. The possibility that this intervention may markedly improve day-to-day function in healthy elders has enormous potential significance for public health.