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Results for “Executive function”

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PubMed2004

Perspectives on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: executive functions, working memory, and language disabilities.

The conceptualization of the nature of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has changed in the last decade. ADHD is now viewed as a neurologically based condition with primary deficits in executive functions and working memory (WM). Students with ADHD have deficits in discourse organization, inferring, and monitoring that are related to their executive function and WM deficits. A large number of students with ADHD also have comorbid reading and language disabilities that exist in addition to the deficits directly associated with the ADHD. Comprehensive evaluation of students with ADHD is essential to address their specific learning needs.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗

PubMed2005

Executive function assessment of patients with schizophrenic disorder residual type in olanzapine treatment: an open study.

Cognitive deficits are a fundamental feature of the schizophrenic disorder, but the effect of antipsychotic treatment is still debated. The study assesses the effect of olanzapine on neurocognitive functioning and symptomatology of patients with schizophrenic disorder residual type. Executive function evaluation by the Wisconsin card sorting test (WCST) was performed on 39 patients treated with olanzapine (5-20 mg/day); the efficacy of drug in improving symptomatology, safety and quality of life was also evaluated. After 7 months of treatment, the mean number of WCST categories tended to increase. Correct responses increased with a statistically significant change from the baseline. The total and unique errors decreased significantly. At all post-baseline visits a decrease from baseline in the PANSS total, positive and negative scores was seen. The proportion of patients with less severe illness (CGI), increased over the course of the study with a corresponding decrease of patients with more severe illness. The quality of life scores also tended to improve during treatment. The Simpson Angus scale, Barnes-akathisia and abnormal involuntary movement scale scores decreased consistently. The most common treatment emergent drug related adverse events were weight gain, insomnia, agitation and anxiety. Neurocognitive functioning in terms of executive performance and symptomatology improved in people with schizophrenia residual type.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

The influence of prolactin response to d-fenfluramine on executive functioning in major depression.

BACKGROUND: The main purpose of this study was to assess the influence of serotonergic activity, as measured by prolactin response to d-fenfluramine, on executive functioning in major depression. METHODS: Forty-one persons between 22 and 71 years of age who met the DSM-IV criteria for major depressive episode were administered the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) in computerized format, and d-fenfluramine was administered orally. Postfenfluramine blood samples for ascertaining plasma prolactin levels were obtained. RESULTS: The key finding was that prolactin response was positively related to four out of five selected WCST variables. Also, increasing age was associated with decreasing WCST performance. There was no interaction between prolactin response and age, indicating that the effects of prolactin response on the WCST generalized across the age range examined. CONCLUSIONS: The overall pattern of results suggests that there may be a relationship between serotonergic activity and executive functioning in major depression.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Differences in executive functioning between Alzheimer's disease and subcortical ischemic vascular dementia.

The present study examined the performance of 114 individuals (62 males, 52 females) on a variety of tests purported to measure executive abilities. Participants were diagnosed with possible or probable Alzheimer's disease (AD), subcortical ischemic vascular dementia (SVaD), or were normal controls (NoDx). Groups were matched for age and education, and clinical groups were matched for severity of dementia. Multivariate and univariate analyses of variance were performed which indicated that the AD and SVaD patients differed from the NoDx on all measures of executive functioning. Further, the AD group made significantly more episodic memory errors than the SVaD group. On the other hand, consistent with previous research, the SVaD group performed significantly better than the AD group on recognition memory, but not on free recall measures. Present findings suggest that AD patients have more executive self-monitoring problems than SVaD patients do, but SVaD patients have more retrieval problems (executive memory search), suggesting a fractionation of executive abilities. Thus, differences between dementia groups depend on the nature of the executive function assessed.

Aged↗

PubMed1999

Executive Functions in Persons with Sleep Apnea.

Seventeen patients with sleep apnea syndrome [SAS, Respiratory Disturbance Index (RDI) = 12-85] were compared with 16 normal controls (RDI < 7) on neuropsychological tests of executive functions, a domain in which SAS patients have been suggested to have deficits. SAS patients demonstrated greater deficits in the retrieval of information from semantic memory (Controlled Oral Word Association task) and in shifting responses in the face of error (Wisconsin Card Sort Test), but differences in working memory were not observed. Eliciting deficits in cognitive executive functions in SAS may require more sensitive measures than are typically used in neuropsychiatric research.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2005

Ecological validity of measures of executive functioning.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to ascertain the ecological validity of the Hayling and Brixton tests of executive functioning, by investigating whether cognitive 'impairment' detected by these measures was associated with assessment of 'disability' and 'handicap'. DESIGN AND METHOD: A correlational design was employed to evaluate the degree of association between the executive test results, and behavioural and community integration measures. Participants were 53 people with brain injuries participants who were selected from neuropsychology patient lists and their 'significant other'. The brain-injured participant was given the executive tests, together with behavioural and community integration questionnaires, while their 'significant other' was given an equivalent behavioural questionnaire and structured interview. RESULTS: There were moderate relationships between scores on the tests and measures of everyday functioning, suggesting that the tests have modest ecological validity. CONCLUSIONS: The tests contribute to understanding the impact of executive impairment on everyday functioning, but they should be interpreted in combination with other measures of executive functioning.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Not all executive functions are related to intelligence.

Accumulating evidence suggests that executive functions (EFs) are related to intelligence, despite neuropsychological results initially considered evidence of no such relation. However, findings that EFs are not unitary raise the issue of how intelligence relates to different EFs. This study examined the relations of fluid and crystallized intelligence and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale IQ to three separable EFs--inhibiting prepotent responses (inhibiting), shifting mental sets (shifting), and updating working memory (updating)--in young adults. Updating was highly correlated with the intelligence measures, but inhibiting and shifting were not. Furthermore, in structural equation models controlling for the inter-EF correlations, updating remained strongly related to intelligence, but the relations of inhibiting and shifting to intelligence were small and not significant. The results indicate that intelligence measures differentially relate to these three EFs, suggesting that current intelligence measures do not equally assess a wide range of executive control abilities likely required for many "intelligent" behaviors.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Differentiation of parkinsonian syndromes according to differences in executive functions.

Groups of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), striatonigral degeneration-type multiple system atrophy (MSA) or progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) with motor disability stages II and III according to Hoehn and Yahr, and a healthy control group were compared using neuropsychological tests of executive functions. The results indicate that all three patient groups were impaired in the tests of executive functions. In comparison with healthy subjects, the three patient groups showed impaired performance regarding verbal fluency, problem solving and verbal and figural working memory. Patients with PD differed significantly from healthy subjects in a test of verbal recency, while patients with MSA or PSP were unimpaired. The comparison of patient groups revealed no differences between PD and MSA patients. However, patients with PSP showed greater impairment in both phonemic and semantic fluency than patients with PD or MSA. Using discriminant function analysis, it was found that variables derived from four verbal fluency tasks (simple and alternate semantic and phonemic fluency) discriminated among the three patient groups at a level significantly exceeding chance. Over 90% of patients with PSP were correctly classified. Patients with PD and MSA were correctly classified in over 70% of cases. These results suggest that verbal fluency tasks may be sensitive measures in the differential diagnosis of PD, MSA and PSP.

Aged↗

PubMed2005

Effects of sertraline on depressive symptoms and attentional and executive functions in major depression.

Reports on the severity and reversibility of cognitive disturbances in major depression in the literature diverge due to methodological biases. The present study, using a precise methodology, examined attention and executive functions in 20 relatively young, depressed patients presenting a first or second episode of unipolar major depression without psychotic or melancholic characteristics and all being treated with the same psychopharmacological treatment (sertraline) to investigate the changes in potential attentional and executive loss during a subacute period of treatment of 7 weeks. We compared their performance with a group of 26 control subjects who were administered the same cognitive tests. This study confirmed psychomotor slowing associated with attentional and executive disturbance in adults with major depression. Conscious attentional interference for words with a negative emotional valence also was shown. After the first weeks of treatment, the effect of the antidepressant treatment with sertraline was accompanied by a beneficial effect on psychomotor slowing on attentional and executive functions.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Executive functions and physical aggression after controlling for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, general memory, and IQ.

This study examined the role of ADHD in the association between physical aggression and two types of executive functions. Boys received a cognitive-neuropsychological test battery over the ages of 13, 14, and 15 years. Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children (DISC 2.25) data were collected from the boys and one parent between ages 14 and 16, and an IQ estimate was obtained at age 15. Three groups, differing in stability and level of physical aggression since kindergarten, were formed: Stable Aggressive, Unstable Aggressive, and Non-aggressive. Composite scores of validated executive function tests of working memory representing subjective ordering and conditional association learning were formed. A MANCOVA (N = 149) using ADHD status, teacher-rated negative emotionality, general memory abilities, and IQ as covariates was performed on the two composite scores. ADHD and teacher-rated emotionality did not provide significant adjustment to the dependent variables. Number of ADHD symptoms was negatively associated only with general memory and IQ. General memory contributed significantly to adjusting for conditional association test scores. Group differences indicated lower conditional association scores for Unstable Aggressive boys relative to the other groups. Both IQ and general memory abilities interacted with subjective ordering within the groups. Specifically, Stable Aggressive boys performed poorly on this measure and did not benefit from increases in IQ whereas Nonaggressive boys performed best and were not disadvantaged by lower general memory abilities. This suggests a relationship exists between aspects of working memory and a history of physical aggression regardless of ADHD and IQ.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Executive functioning in boys with ADHD: primarily an inhibition deficit?

This study was aimed at: (1) testing whether boys with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) demonstrate a deficit in response inhibition and deficits in other executive functions (EF), or alternatively, demonstrate a deficit in only response inhibition; (2) investigating which role associated factors, such as IQ, age, and performance on non-EF tasks play in EF in ADHD; (3) studying the association between the three different forms of inhibition studied here. Boys with ADHD were compared with normal control (NC) boys on five domains of executive functioning: inhibition (inhibition of a prepotent response, inhibition of an ongoing response, and interference control), planning, set-shifting, working memory, and verbal fluency. Boys with ADHD demonstrated deficits in interference control, inhibition of an ongoing response, planning, and letter fluency. After controlling for age, IQ, and non-EF measures, none of the EF deficits in ADHD remained. Finally, correlations between different inhibition measures were generally low, and correlations within domains of inhibition were not higher than correlations between domains of inhibition. This calls into question the distinctiveness of the different forms of response inhibition.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2003

Concurrent and 2-year longitudinal relations between executive function and the behavior of 1st and 2nd grade children.

Abstract Concurrent and 2-year longitudinal relations were investigated between two indicators of children's ( n =60; mean age = years 11 months) executive function, inhibitory control and sequencing ability, and behavior problem symptomatology. Dependent measures were parent and teacher reported internalizing and externalizing behavior. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses demonstrated few significant concurrent associations between either inhibitory control or sequencing ability, and behavior problem symptoms. In contrast, baseline inhibitory control predicted decreased teacher reported externalizing, and parent reported externalizing and internalizing behavior problems over a 2-year period. Baseline sequencing ability also predicted decreased teacher reported externalizing and parent reported internalizing behavior over this same time period. Results suggest that some aspects of executive function in early elementary grade-school children may be more strongly associated with change in behavior over time than concurrent behavior. Implications of these findings for the prevention of behavior problems are discussed.

Child↗

PubMed2005

Age-dependent change in executive function and gamma 40 Hz phase synchrony.

Decline in cognitive function is well recognized, yet few neurophysiological correlates of age-related cognitive decline have been identified. In this study we examined the impact of age on neurocognitive function and Gamma phase synchrony among 550 normal subjects (aged 11-70). Gamma phase synchrony was acquired to targets in the auditory oddball paradigm. The two tasks of executive function were switching of attention and an electronic maze. Subjects were divided into four age groups, which were balanced for sex. We hypothesized that reduced cognitive performance among older healthy individuals would be associated with age-related changes in gamma phase synchrony. Results showed a significant decrease in executive function in the oldest (51-70 years) age group. ANOVAs of age-by-frontal Gamma synchrony also showed a significant effect of age on Gamma phase synchrony in the left frontal region that corresponded modestly to the age effect found on executive task performance, with reduced performance associated with increased gamma synchrony. The results indicate that age-related changes in cognitive function evident among elderly individuals may in part be related to decreased ability to integrate information and this may be reflected as a compensatory increase in gamma synchrony in frontal regions of the brain.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1997

Aging and executive function skills: an examination of a community-dwelling older adult population.

The purpose of the present study was to employ the Tower of Hanoi task to the study of possible changes in executive function skills in older adults. The study used a quasi-experimental design, with age group (i.e., young adult, young elderly, or older elderly), being the independent variable in examining performance differences between younger and older adults. Data were analyzed cross-sectionally by age group. Nineteen elderly men and women comprised two groups; nine Young Elderly with an average age of 65 years and ten Older Elderly with an average age of 75 years. Two men and ten women served as a Young Adult comparison group having an average age of 19 years. Performance on the Tower of Hanoi was measured by efficiency scores (number of trials to consecutive solutions), frequency of error types, self-correction scores (completing the goal configuration in twenty or fewer moves after committing an error precluding a "correct" solution), and error perseveration (committing the same error on two consecutive trials of a problem). Analysis of variance and chi-squared tests suggested similar executive capacities among the 9 young adult and the 8 young elderly participants as compared to their 7 older elderly peers on the 3-disk task. However, on the 4-disk task where problem complexity increased by the addition of another disk and longer move sequences, young adult participants showed superior performance on the average than either young elderly or older elderly participants. Although the present study is limited by the small sample size and the use of cross-sectional analyses to examine age differences, these findings are consistent with the hypothesis of age differences in executive function.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Unilateral frontal lobe epilepsy affects executive functions in children.

Very few studies to date have investigated the neuropsychological changes detectable in children suffering from frontal lobe epilepsy (FLE). The aim of the present study was to assess the effects of FLE on cognitive and executive functions in childhood. The sample includes 17 children with a frontal epileptogenic focus (10 right and 7 left), with no evidence of anatomical brain damage. These subjects were assessed by means of a battery of tests to investigate executive functioning. The results emphasised the presence of selective impairments of frontal lobe functions without evidence of deficits in global intellectual functioning. No side-specific deficits were detected, while an earlier onset of epilepsy and the duration of the disorder, but not the seizures frequency, were found to correspond with more severe deficits in some specific frontal lobe functions.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Executive functioning and olfactory identification in young adults with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder.

Young adults with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; N = 105) were compared with a control group (N = 64) on 14 measures of executive function and olfactory identification using a 2 (group) X 2 (sex) design. The ADHD group performed significantly worse on 11 measures. No Group X Sex interaction was found on any measures. No differences were found in the ADHD group as a function of ADHD subtype or comorbid oppositional defiant disorder. Comorbid depression influenced the results of only 1 test (Digit Symbol). After IQ was controlled for, some group differences in verbal working memory, attention, and odor identification were no longer significant, whereas those in inhibition, interference control, nonverbal working memory, and other facets of attention remained so. Executive function deficits found in childhood ADHD exist in young adults with ADHD and are largely not influenced by comorbidity but may be partly a function of low intelligence.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Specific attention and executive function deficits in the long-term outcome of severe closed head injury.

Twenty-eight children (mean age= 10.9 years, SD= 1.9 years) who had experienced a severe closed head injury were assessed for outcome on tests of intelligence, attention and executive function at 1 year post-injury. The children with closed head injury were matched with children from a normative sample for age and intellectual ability. Specific deficits in attention and executive function were found in the closed head injury sample. The importance of including these outcome variables in child neuropsychological assessment is supported.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Cognitive processing in children using cochlear implants: the relationship between visual memory, attention, and executive functions and developing language skills.

We performed this study to determine whether children using a cochlear implant performed differently from age- and gender-matched hearing aid users on 8 neuropsychological measures of visual memory, attention, and executive functioning. The study also examined whether differences in cognitive skills could account for some of the observed variance in speech perception, vocabulary, and language abilities of hearing-impaired children. In contrast to previous studies, our results revealed no significant cognitive differences between children who use a cochlear implant and children who use hearing aids. Partial correlation analysis indicated that the children's visual memory skills, ie, their recognition memory, delayed recall, and paired associative learning memory skills, correlated significantly with their language skills. When examined at a significance level of .01, attention and executive functioning skills did not relate to the children's developing speech perception, vocabulary, or language skills. The results suggested that differences in visual memory skills may account for some of the variance seen in the language abilities of children using implants and children using hearing aids.

Adolescent↗