Brain Markers of Improvements in Cognitive Functioning
| Status: | Active, not recruiting |
|---|---|
| Conditions: | Hospital, Neurology, Psychiatric |
| Therapuetic Areas: | Neurology, Psychiatry / Psychology, Other |
| Healthy: | No |
| Age Range: | 21 - 55 |
| Updated: | 3/9/2019 |
| Start Date: | October 1, 2017 |
| End Date: | June 1, 2019 |
EEG Markers of Training-Induced Improvements in Cognitive Functioning
Some of the most common, persistent, and disabling consequences of traumatic brain injury
affect an individual's ability to achieve personal goals. Interventions that strengthen
abilities such as being able to concentrate, remember, stay calm and overcome challenges,
could have far reaching benefits for Veterans. One challenge in rehabilitation is that
response to training can be highly variable, and a better understanding of the neural bases
for this variability could inform care. This project will test whether changes in markers of
the brain's electrical activity (using the non-invasive technique of electroencephalograms,
EEG) can explain differences in responses to skill training.
affect an individual's ability to achieve personal goals. Interventions that strengthen
abilities such as being able to concentrate, remember, stay calm and overcome challenges,
could have far reaching benefits for Veterans. One challenge in rehabilitation is that
response to training can be highly variable, and a better understanding of the neural bases
for this variability could inform care. This project will test whether changes in markers of
the brain's electrical activity (using the non-invasive technique of electroencephalograms,
EEG) can explain differences in responses to skill training.
Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) can impair cognitive functioning long after the initial
trauma. Some of the most common, persistent, and disabling consequences of traumatic brain
injury are deficits in higher order cognitive functions that direct more basic processes
based on an individual's goals. Symptoms such as distractibility and difficulty holding
goal-relevant information in memory can affect achievement of personal and professional
goals. These cognitive problems can be exacerbated by post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms,
commonly observed in the Veteran population. Interventions that strengthen goal-directed
control functions, such as the selection of relevant information along with inhibition of
distracting information, could have far reaching benefits for Veterans.
One challenge in rehabilitation is that response to training can be highly variable, and a
better understanding of the neural bases for this variability could inform patient care.
Investigators have developed a system for training neurocognitive skills that can be used in
rehabilitation neuroscience studies to elucidate the neural bases of improvements in
cognitive functioning. The training system is designed to help patients improve goal-directed
brain state regulation, and preliminary work has investigated brain network parameters that
may predict response to training. Electroencephalography (EEG) potentially provides easily
accessible markers for the neural bases of improvements with training.
Objectives in this pilot study are to investigate the potential of EEG markers to: (1)
explain differential responses to attention regulation training; and (2) predict subsequent
responses to training.
trauma. Some of the most common, persistent, and disabling consequences of traumatic brain
injury are deficits in higher order cognitive functions that direct more basic processes
based on an individual's goals. Symptoms such as distractibility and difficulty holding
goal-relevant information in memory can affect achievement of personal and professional
goals. These cognitive problems can be exacerbated by post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms,
commonly observed in the Veteran population. Interventions that strengthen goal-directed
control functions, such as the selection of relevant information along with inhibition of
distracting information, could have far reaching benefits for Veterans.
One challenge in rehabilitation is that response to training can be highly variable, and a
better understanding of the neural bases for this variability could inform patient care.
Investigators have developed a system for training neurocognitive skills that can be used in
rehabilitation neuroscience studies to elucidate the neural bases of improvements in
cognitive functioning. The training system is designed to help patients improve goal-directed
brain state regulation, and preliminary work has investigated brain network parameters that
may predict response to training. Electroencephalography (EEG) potentially provides easily
accessible markers for the neural bases of improvements with training.
Objectives in this pilot study are to investigate the potential of EEG markers to: (1)
explain differential responses to attention regulation training; and (2) predict subsequent
responses to training.
Inclusion Criteria:
- Veterans
- History of TBI (as defined by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and VA,
with reported plausible mechanism of head injury, loss of consciousness with some
period of posttraumatic alteration in cognition), in the chronic, stable phase of
recovery (>6 months from injury)
- On stable psychoactive medications (> 30 days)
- Able and willing to participate in EEG, training and, assessments
Exclusion Criteria:
- Severely apathetic/abulic, aphasic, or other reasons for being unable or unwilling to
participate with the training tasks
- Severe cognitive dysfunction
- History of neurodevelopmental abnormalities
- Ongoing illicit drug or alcohol abuse
- Schizophrenia
- Bipolar disorder
- History of other neurological disorders
- Current medical illnesses that may alter mental status or disrupt participation in the
study
- Active psychotropic medication changes
- There will be no restriction in regard to gender, race, and socioeconomic status
We found this trial at
1
site
Sacramento, California 95655
Principal Investigator: Anthony J. W. Chen, MD MA
Phone: (858) 552-8585
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