Publications by authors named "Emanuel Boutzoukas"

Article Synopsis
  • Cognitive training with the Useful Field of View (UFOV) task can reduce dementia risk and improve daily living activities in older adults, but results vary among different studies.
  • This study examined how learning from verbal and visuospatial memory tasks (HVLT-R and BVMT-R) affects outcomes from a UFOV task called Double Decision after a 3-month cognitive training intervention.
  • Findings revealed that older adults who struggled more with BVMT-R showed significant improvements in the Double Decision task, suggesting that those with lower baseline visuospatial abilities may benefit the most from speed-of-processing cognitive training.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - Non-pathological aging leads to declines in cognitive functions, especially processing speed, making it a critical public health concern as the older adult population grows rapidly.
  • - Studies indicate that cognitive training and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can significantly enhance cognition in older adults, focusing on attention and working memory.
  • - This research shows that when combined, active tDCS and cognitive training improve functional brain connectivity and potentially enhance cognitive performance, more so than cognitive training alone.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Limited research exists on the association between resting-state functional network connectivity in the brain and learning and memory processes in advanced age. This study examined within-network connectivity of cingulo-opercular (CON), frontoparietal control (FPCN), and default mode (DMN) networks, and verbal and visuospatial learning and memory in older adults. Across domains, we hypothesized that greater CON and FPCN connectivity would associate with better learning, and greater DMN connectivity would associate with better memory.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Minimizing head motion during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is important for maintaining the integrity of neuroimaging data. While there are a variety of techniques to control for head motion, oftentimes, individuals with excessive in-scanner motion are removed from analyses. Movement in the scanner tends to increase with age; however, the cognitive profile of these "high-movers" in older adults has yet to be explored.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Declines in processing speed performance occur in aging and are a critical marker of functional independence in older adults. Numerous studies suggest that Useful Field of View (UFOV) training may ameliorate cognitive decline in older adults. Despite its efficacy, little is known about the neural correlates of this task.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cognitive training has shown promise for improving cognition in older adults. Age-related neuroanatomical changes may affect cognitive training outcomes. White matter hyperintensities are one common brain change in aging reflecting decreased white matter integrity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Prior randomized control trials have shown that cognitive training interventions resulted in improved proximal task performance, improved functioning of activities of daily living, and reduced dementia risk in healthy older adults. Neural correlates implicated in cognitive training include hub brain regions of higher-order resting state networks including the default mode network, dorsal attention network, frontoparietal control network, and cingulo-opercular network. However, little is known about resting state network change after cognitive training, or the relation between functional brain changes and improvement in proximal task performance.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Executive function is a cognitive domain that typically declines in non-pathological aging. Two cognitive control networks that are vulnerable to aging-the cingulo-opercular (CON) and fronto-parietal control (FPCN) networks-play a role in various aspects of executive functioning. However, it is unclear how communication within these networks at rest relates to executive function subcomponents in older adults.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study examines the impact of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) combined with cognitive training on neurotransmitter concentrations in the prefrontal cortex. Twenty-three older adults were randomized to either active-tDCS or sham-tDCS in combination with cognitive training for 2 weeks. Active-tDCS was delivered over F3 (cathode) and F4 (anode) electrode placements for 20 min at 2 mA intensity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Declines in processing speed performance occur in aging and are a critical marker of functional independence in older adults. Studies suggest that Useful Field of View (UFOV) training may ameliorate cognitive decline. Despite its efficacy, little is known about the neural correlates of this task.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Speed-of-processing abilities decline with age yet are important in performing instrumental activities of daily living. The useful field of view, or Double Decision task, assesses speed-of-processing and divided attention. Performance on this task is related to attention, executive functioning, and visual processing abilities in older adults, and poorer performance predicts more motor vehicle accidents in the elderly.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Frontal lobe structures decline faster than most other brain regions in older adults. Age-related change in the frontal lobe is associated with poorer executive function (e.g.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been proposed as a possible method for remediating age-associated cognitive decline in the older adult population. While tDCS has shown potential for improving cognitive functions in healthy older adults, stimulation outcomes on various cognitive domains have been mixed.

Methods: A systematic search was performed in four databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and PsychInfo.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

: The association between hippocampal volume and memory is continuing to be characterized in healthy older adults. Prior research suggests smaller hippocampal volume in healthy older adults is associated with poorer episodic memory and processing speed, as well as working memory, verbal learning, and executive functioning as measured by the NIH Toolbox Fluid (Fluid Cognition Composite, FCC) and Crystalized Cognition Composites (CCC). This study aimed to replicate these findings and to evaluate the association between: (1) hippocampal asymmetry index and cognition; and (2) independent contributions of the left and right hippocampal volume and cognition in a large sample of healthy older adults.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are estimated to occur in greater than 63% of older adults over the age of 60 years. WMH identified in the T2-weighted FLAIR images can be combined with T1-weighted images to enhance individualized current flow models of older adults by accounting for the presence of WMH and its effects on delivered tES current in the aging brain.

Methods: Individualized head models were derived from T1-weighted images of 130 healthy older adults (mean = 71 years).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Age-related differences in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) structure and function have each been linked to working memory. However, few studies have integrated multimodal imaging to simultaneously investigate relationships among structure, function, and cognition. We aimed to clarify how specifically DLPFC structure and function contribute to working memory in healthy older adults.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • * The study examines the relationship between brain structure and speed of processing in older adults, analyzing cortical volumes and performance on a specific cognitive task called the POSIT Double Decision.
  • * Results indicate that reduced thickness in several brain areas, particularly in the right hemisphere, is linked to worse performance on the Double Decision task, highlighting the complexity of the neural underpinnings of speed of processing.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is being studied for its potential to enhance cognitive function in older adults, and this pilot study explores how to personalize its effects based on individual differences in brain response.
  • Fourteen healthy older adults participated in a two-week cognitive training program while receiving tDCS, and their performance on a working memory task was analyzed using machine learning algorithms to predict treatment outcomes.
  • The results showed an impressive 86% accuracy in identifying which participants would benefit from tDCS, highlighting that both the intensity and direction of the electric current significantly influence cognitive improvements.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Aging is associated with disruptions in the resting-state functional architecture of the brain. Previous studies have primarily focused on age-related declines in the default mode network (DMN) and its implications in Alzheimer's disease. However, due to mixed findings, it is unclear if changes in resting-state network functional connectivity are linked to cognitive decline in healthy older adults.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: We endeavored to evaluate a cohort of patients diagnosed with SCN8A-related epilepsy in a multi-disciplinary clinic and to create a bio-repository.

Methods: We recruited patients with epilepsy due to SCN8A variants at Children's National Medical Center, through family organizations, or SCN8A.net.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • This study looks at brain differences in children with left-hemisphere focal epilepsy compared to kids without epilepsy.
  • Researchers found that the brains of kids with epilepsy were thinner in certain areas, but the surface area didn't change.
  • The results showed that as kids age, their brain thickness changes differently in those with epilepsy compared to typical kids, and better IQ was linked to thicker brain areas in typical kids.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A PHP Error was encountered

Severity: Notice

Message: fwrite(): Write of 34 bytes failed with errno=28 No space left on device

Filename: drivers/Session_files_driver.php

Line Number: 272

Backtrace:

A PHP Error was encountered

Severity: Warning

Message: session_write_close(): Failed to write session data using user defined save handler. (session.save_path: /var/lib/php/sessions)

Filename: Unknown

Line Number: 0

Backtrace: