Continuous Performance Test (continuous + performance_test)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Distribution within Medical Sciences


Selected Abstracts


Sustained attention as a potential endophenotype for bipolar disorder

ACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 3 2010
I. Ancín
Ancín I, Santos JL, Teijeira C, Sánchez-Morla EM, Bescós MJ, Argudo I, Torrijos S, Vázquez-Álvarez B, De La Vega I, López-Ibor JJ, Barabash A, Cabranes-Díaz JA. Sustained attention as a potential endophenotype for bipolar disorder. Objective:, Nowadays, it is accepted that to identify the biological basis of psychiatric illnesses it would be useful to deconstruct them into the most basic manifestations, such as cognitive deficits. The aim of this study was to set attention deficit as a stable vulnerability marker of bipolar disorder. Method:, Sustained attention was evaluated by the Continuous Performance Test (DS-CPT) in 143 euthymic bipolar patients and 105 controls. To estimate the influence of clinical profile in attention, patients completed a semi-structured interview. Results:, Bipolar patients showed a deficit in attention during euthymic periods. This disturbance correlated with years of evolution, age of onset and age of first hospitalisation; and was not influenced by other clinical data. Conclusion:, Sustained attention may be considered as an endophenotype of the illness. [source]


The Impact of Maternal Age on the Effects of Prenatal Alcohol Exposure on Attention

ALCOHOLISM, Issue 10 2010
Lisa M. Chiodo
Background:, Prenatal exposure to alcohol has a variety of morphologic and neurobehavioral consequences, yet more than 10% of women continue to drink during pregnancy, placing their offspring at risk for fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). Identification of at-risk pregnancies has been difficult, in part, because the presence and severity of FASD are influenced by factors beyond the pattern of alcohol consumption. Establishing maternal characteristics, such as maternal age, that increase the risk of FASD is critical for targeted pregnancy intervention. Methods:, We examined the moderating effect of maternal age on measures of attention in 462 children from a longitudinal cohort born to women with known alcohol consumption levels (absolute ounces of alcohol per day at conception) who were recruited during pregnancy. Analyses examined the impact of binge drinking, as average ounces of absolute alcohol per drinking day. Smoking and use of cocaine, marijuana, and opiates were also assessed. At 7 years of age, the children completed the Continuous Performance Test, and their teachers completed the Achenbach Teacher Report Form. Results:, After controlling for covariates, stepwise multiple regression analyses revealed a negative relation between levels of prenatal binge drinking and several measures of attention. The interaction between alcohol consumption and maternal age was also significant, indicating that the impact of maternal binge drinking during pregnancy on attention was greater among children born to older drinking mothers. Conclusion:, These findings are consistent with previous findings that children born to older alcohol-using women have more deleterious effects of prenatal alcohol exposure on other neurobehavioral outcomes. [source]


Relationship of psychopathological symptoms and cognitive function to subjective quality of life in patients with chronic schizophrenia

PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 1 2010
Kenji Tomida md
Aims:, The purpose of the present study was to examine the extent of the effects of psychopathological symptoms and cognitive function on quality of life (QOL) in patients with chronic schizophrenia. Methods:, Data were obtained using the Japanese Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale (JSQLS), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Wisconsin Card-Sorting Test (WCST) Keio version, and Continuous Performance Test (CPT) for 52 schizophrenia patients. Results:, Stepwise regression analysis showed that PANSS depression/anxiety factors predicted JSQLS psychosocial conditions and motivation/energy, and that WCST Categories Achieved predicted JSQLS symptoms/side-effects. Conclusions:, Psychopathological symptoms and cognitive function affect subjective QOL in patients with schizophrenia. If the final goal is treatment that improves QOL in a manner that patients themselves are aware of, clinicians probably need to consider a treatment strategy that improves depression/anxiety symptom. [source]


Correlation between scores on Continuous Performance Test and plasma concentration for schizophrenic patients on risperidone

PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 2 2004
PO SEE CHEN md
Abstract, The purpose of the present paper was to evaluate the relationship between plasma antipsychotics concentration and cognitive task performance. This may provide valuable information for rational dosage titration. Literature on the relationship between plasma risperidone (RIS) concentration and performance on the Continuous Performance Test (CPT) remains scarce. Ten patients (four male, six female) were given RIS for more than 1 year. Steady-state plasma concentrations of the parent drug RIS and its active metabolite, 9-hydroxy-risperidone (9-OH-RIS), were measured using specific liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry assay. Psychopathology, side-effects of extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS) and CPT were also assessed. A negative correlation was found between CPT performance and the plasma RIS, 9-OH-RIS and its active moiety (RIS + 9-OH-RIS) concentrations. Both RIS and 9-OH-RIS have an impact on the CPT performance of schizophrenic patients. Optimal active moiety plasma concentration for best cognitive performance needs further study. [source]


Comparison of hangover effects among triazolam, flunitrazepam and quazepam in healthy subjects: A preliminary report

PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 3 2003
Taro Takahashi
Abstract The aim of the present study was to compare the hangover effects of night-time administration of triazolam (0.25 mg), flunitrazepam (1 mg) and quazepam (15 mg) in healthy subjects. Daytime sleepiness and performance level following the night-time administration of the drugs were assessed using Standford Sleepiness Scale (SSS), Sleep Evaluation Questionnaire (SEQ), Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT), actigraphy recordings and Continuous Performance Test (CPT). Fifteen healthy volunteers were given one of the three hypnotics at each drug session, which lasted for 1 week, in a single-blind cross-over fashion. No significant between-drug difference was observed for the psychomotor performance assessed by CPT. Subjective hangover effects assessed by SSS and SEQ in the morning were prominent for flunitrazepam and quazepam relative to triazolam, whereas objective indices such as MSLT or activity counts obtained in actigraphy indicated a marked hangover effect of quazepam compared with the other two compounds restrictively in the afternoon, which were nearly in accordance with their pharmacokinetic profiles. [source]


Probing attentional dysfunctions in schizophrenia: Startle modification during a continuous performance test

PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 4 2008
Erin A. Hazlett
Abstract Startle eyeblink modification was measured in 20 relatively asymptomatic medicated schizophrenia outpatients and 18 matched controls in order to test for deficits in early and later stages of attentional processing during a memory-load version of the Continuous Performance Test. Participants viewed a series of digits and pressed a button after the digit 7 of each 3,7 sequence. On some trials, a startling noise burst was presented either 120 or 1200 ms following cues that a response might be needed soon (the digit 3) and also following noncues. Controls showed greater startle inhibition at 120 ms following cue than noncue prepulses, whereas patients showed equal inhibition to both, suggesting a deficiency in allocation of controlled attentional resources in early stages of processing. The patients, however, did show large startle inhibition at 120 ms when a distracting stimulus accompanied the task-relevant cue, unlike the controls, who ignored the distracting stimulus. In contrast, both groups showed equal startle inhibition 1200 ms following cue and noncue prepulses, indicating that later modality-specific attention processes are not impaired in patients during this paradigm. Both groups also showed equal inhibition at 120 ms during passively attended prepulses, suggesting that automatic attentional processes were not impaired in these patients. [source]


Persistent attentional dysfunction in remitted bipolar disorder

BIPOLAR DISORDERS, Issue 2 2001
Kelly E Wilder-Willis
Objectives: Although previous research has shown that attentional dysfunction is common during acute mood episodes in individuals with bipolar disorder (BPD), few studies have examined whether attentional deficits are evident during periods of symptom stability. The goal of this study was to determine whether clinically stable individuals with BPD would have attentional disturbances relative to healthy subjects. Methods: Fourteen patients with BPD and 12 healthy comparison subjects participated in the study, and were administered the Degraded Stimulus Continuous Performance Test (DSCPT), Digit Span Distractibility Test (DSDT) and Grooved Pegboard Test (GPT). Psychiatric symptoms were assessed with the Young Mania Rating Scale and the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms. Medication side effects were measured with the Simpson Rating Scale. Results: The patient group responded significantly more slowly than the control group on the DSCPT (z=,2.52, p=0.01) and the GPT (z=,3.37, p=0.001). There was a trend towards the BPD patients demonstrating impaired perceptual sensitivity on the DSCPT (z=1.68, p=0.09). The two groups did not differ on the DSDT (z=,1.06, p=0.3). Poor performance on the GPT and DSCPT target reaction time were not associated with symptom ratings or medications. Conclusion: The findings suggest that impairments in fine motor skills and reaction time may be present in clinically stable patients with BPD, even after accounting for psychiatric symptoms and medication effects. Performance decrements on attentional tasks may be in part reflective of motor impairments in patients with BPD. [source]


Is there progressive cognitive dysfunction in Sjögren Syndrome?

ACTA NEUROLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 3 2010
A preliminary study
Martínez S, Cáceres C, Mataró M, Escudero D, Latorre P, Dávalos A. Is there progressive cognitive dysfunction in Sjögren Syndrome? A preliminary study. Acta Neurol Scand: 122: 182,188. © 2010 The Authors Journal compilation © 2010 Blackwell Munksgaard. Objective,,, The aim of this study was to determine the progression of cognitive dysfunction in primary Sjögren Syndrome (SS). Methods,,, Twelve subjects with SS were compared with ten subjects with migraine and ten healthy controls on neuropsychological, mood and fatigue tests at baseline and 8 years later. Results,,, At follow-up, SS subjects performed below subjects with migraine on the Continuous Performance Test (CPT) but did not differ on other tasks. Compared with controls, both clinical groups obtained lower scores on simple reaction time, patients with SS obtained lower scores on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) and patients with migraine performed below controls on the Benton's Judgment of Line Orientation Test (JOLO). Clinical groups did not differ on cognitive changes over time, except that migraine subjects improved on verbal fluency. Compared with baseline, both SS and migraine patients were more impaired on simple reaction time, Trail Making Test part B, Stroop and JOLO. However, they showed higher scores on verbal and visual memory, WCST and CPT reaction time. SS also showed higher levels of depression and fatigue than migraine and controls, with no significant changes over time. Discussion,,, Preliminary evidence indicates some cognitive deficits in both SS and migraine following a pattern of fronto-subcortical dysfunction without a significant cognitive decline over time. [source]


Cognitive response control in writer's cramp

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 6 2001
D. Berg
Disturbances of the motor and sensory system as well as an alteration of the preparation of movements have been reported to play a role in the pathogenesis of dystonias. However, it is unclear whether higher aspects of cortical , like cognitive , functions are also involved. Recently, the NoGo-anteriorization (NGA) elicited with a visual continuous performance test (CPT) during recording of a 21-channel electroencephalogram has been proposed as an electrophysiological standard-index for cognitive response control. The NGA consists of a more anterior location of the positive area of the brain electrical field associated with the inhibition (NoGo-condition) compared with that of the execution (Go-condition) of a prepared motor response in the CPT. This response control paradigm was applied in 16 patients with writer's cramp (WC) and 14 age matched healthy controls. Topographical analysis of the associated event-related potentials revealed a significant (P < 0.05) NGA effect for both patients and controls. Moreover, patients with WC showed a significantly higher global field power value (P < 0.05) in the Go-condition and a significantly higher difference-amplitude (P < 0.05) in the NoGo-condition. A source location analysis with the low resolution electromagnetic tomography (LORETA) method demonstrated a hypoactivity for the Go-condition in the parietal cortex of the right hemisphere and a hyperactivity in the NoGo-condition in the left parietal cortex in patients with WC compared with healthy controls. These results indicate an altered response control in patients with WC in widespread cortical brain areas and therefore support the hypothesis that the pathogenesis of WC is not restricted to a pure sensory-motor dysfunction. [source]


A genome-wide quantitative trait loci scan of neurocognitive performances in families with schizophrenia

GENES, BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR, Issue 7 2010
Y.-J. Lien
Patients with schizophrenia frequently display neurocognitive dysfunction, and genetic studies suggest it to be an endophenotype for schizophrenia. Genetic studies of such traits may thus help elucidate the biological pathways underlying genetic susceptibility to schizophrenia. This study aimed to identify loci influencing neurocognitive performance in schizophrenia. The sample comprised of 1207 affected individuals and 1035 unaffected individuals of Han Chinese ethnicity from 557 sib-pair families co-affected with DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition) schizophrenia. Subjects completed a face-to-face semi-structured interview, the continuous performance test (CPT) and the Wisconsin card sorting test (WCST), and were genotyped with 386 microsatellite markers across the genome. A series of autosomal genome-wide multipoint nonparametric quantitative trait loci (QTL) linkage analysis were performed in affected individuals only. Determination of genome-wide empirical significance was performed using 1000 simulated genome scans. One linkage peak attaining genome-wide significance was identified: 12q24.32 for undegraded CPT hit rate [nonparametric linkage z (NPL-Z) scores = 3.32, genome-wide empirical P = 0.03]. This result was higher than the peak linkage signal obtained in the previous genome-wide scan using a dichotomous diagnosis of schizophrenia. The identification of 12q24.32 as a QTL has not been consistently implicated in previous linkage studies on schizophrenia, which suggests that the analysis of endophenotypes provides additional information from what is seen in analyses that rely on diagnoses. This region with linkage to a particular neurocognitive feature may inform functional hypotheses for further genetic studies for schizophrenia. [source]


An experimental approach to executive fingerprinting in young children

INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 2 2002
Michael Beveridge
Abstract This paper presents a methodology designed to investigate the potential independence of memory and inhibition as component processes of executive function (EF) in young school age children. Two groups of 30 6- and 8-year-olds were tested on three EF tasks; a continuous performance test, a Stroop-like task, and a start/stop task. Each task had four conditions, which systematically combined two levels of memory load and two levels of inhibitory demand. This design enabled us to examine whether, within the range of memory and inhibitory loads used, the effects of memory and inhibitory demands on these tasks were additive and independent, or instead interacted with one another. Analyses of both errors and response times across the three tasks provided no positive evidence for the view that memory and inhibition are inter-dependent processes. The tasks proved sensitive to age, with the 8-year-olds generally outperforming the 6-year-olds. In addition, effects of the memory and inhibition manipulations were observed. However, there was little evidence that memory load and inhibitory demand interacted in the way that would be expected if these factors draw on a shared pool of common executive resources. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Measurement of development of cognitive and attention functions in children using continuous performance test

PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 2 2008
Noriko Kanaka ba
Aim:, The development of attention function in children is still not sufficiently clear. Although it is difficult to objectively assess attention function, continuous performance tests (CPT) can be used to objectively assess cognitive function along with attention. The development of cognitive and attention functions was examined in children using a CPT. Methods:, A total of 541 healthy girls aged 5,12 years participated. Ten parameters were calculated: numbers of cancellations for either target stimuli (T-cancel) or non-target stimuli (N-cancel), numbers of omission errors (Omission) and commission errors (Commission), hit rate (Hit), false alarm rate (False), mean reaction time for correct response (RT), coefficient of variance for mean reaction time (CVRT), sensitivity index (d,), and ln,. Results:, The parameters were divided into three types based on pattern of change. T-cancel, False, and Commission, which are related to inhibition of response, N-cancel, Hit, and Omission, which are related to inattention to stimuli, and CVRT, which is related to stability of processing time, exhibited significant change until 5 or 6 years of age. d,, which is related to ability to discriminate between target or non-target, exhibited significant change until 8 years of age. RT, which is related to processing time, exhibited significant change until 11 years of age. ln, exhibited no significant differences among age groups. Conclusions:, These findings indicate that inhibition function, inattention to stimuli, and stability of processing time develop first. Discrimination ability subsequently increases based on these developments, and finally processing time is reduced. [source]


Probing attentional dysfunctions in schizophrenia: Startle modification during a continuous performance test

PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 4 2008
Erin A. Hazlett
Abstract Startle eyeblink modification was measured in 20 relatively asymptomatic medicated schizophrenia outpatients and 18 matched controls in order to test for deficits in early and later stages of attentional processing during a memory-load version of the Continuous Performance Test. Participants viewed a series of digits and pressed a button after the digit 7 of each 3,7 sequence. On some trials, a startling noise burst was presented either 120 or 1200 ms following cues that a response might be needed soon (the digit 3) and also following noncues. Controls showed greater startle inhibition at 120 ms following cue than noncue prepulses, whereas patients showed equal inhibition to both, suggesting a deficiency in allocation of controlled attentional resources in early stages of processing. The patients, however, did show large startle inhibition at 120 ms when a distracting stimulus accompanied the task-relevant cue, unlike the controls, who ignored the distracting stimulus. In contrast, both groups showed equal startle inhibition 1200 ms following cue and noncue prepulses, indicating that later modality-specific attention processes are not impaired in patients during this paradigm. Both groups also showed equal inhibition at 120 ms during passively attended prepulses, suggesting that automatic attentional processes were not impaired in these patients. [source]


Neurocognitive effects of switching from methylphenidate-IR to OROS-methylphenidate in children with ADHD

HUMAN PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY: CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL, Issue 2 2009
Yeni Kim
Abstract Objectives This study evaluated neurocognitive changes after switching from immediate release forms of methylphenidate (MPH-IR) to osmotic release oral system methylphenidate (OROS-MPH). Methods 102 children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) participated in an open label, 28,day trial, performing neurocognitive test at baseline and at 28 days after the switch from MPH-IR to OROS-MPH. Results There were significant improvements in the commission error and the reaction time of both visual and auditory continuous performance tests (CPTs) at 28 days after switching from MPH-IR to OROS-MPH. A positive correlation was observed between the improvement in parent/caregiver-rated IOWA Conners total score (, IOWA) and the reduction in commission error (r,=,0.3, p,=,0.001) and reduction in reaction time variability (r,=,0.3, p,=,0.006) of visual CPT. In a linear regression model, the change in parent/caregiver-rated IOWA Conners scale total scores were significant predictors of change in commission error (,,=,0.3, p,=,0.005, CI,=,0.4,2.3, adjusted R2,=,0.12) and RT variability (,,=,0.3, p,=,0.004, CI,=,0.5,2.4, adjusted R2,=,0.09) of visual CPT. Conclusions These data suggest that MPH-IR may be successfully switched to OROS-MPH treatment with associated improvements in neurocognitive performance. Large-scale controlled trials are needed to replicate these findings. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Measurement of development of cognitive and attention functions in children using continuous performance test

PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 2 2008
Noriko Kanaka ba
Aim:, The development of attention function in children is still not sufficiently clear. Although it is difficult to objectively assess attention function, continuous performance tests (CPT) can be used to objectively assess cognitive function along with attention. The development of cognitive and attention functions was examined in children using a CPT. Methods:, A total of 541 healthy girls aged 5,12 years participated. Ten parameters were calculated: numbers of cancellations for either target stimuli (T-cancel) or non-target stimuli (N-cancel), numbers of omission errors (Omission) and commission errors (Commission), hit rate (Hit), false alarm rate (False), mean reaction time for correct response (RT), coefficient of variance for mean reaction time (CVRT), sensitivity index (d,), and ln,. Results:, The parameters were divided into three types based on pattern of change. T-cancel, False, and Commission, which are related to inhibition of response, N-cancel, Hit, and Omission, which are related to inattention to stimuli, and CVRT, which is related to stability of processing time, exhibited significant change until 5 or 6 years of age. d,, which is related to ability to discriminate between target or non-target, exhibited significant change until 8 years of age. RT, which is related to processing time, exhibited significant change until 11 years of age. ln, exhibited no significant differences among age groups. Conclusions:, These findings indicate that inhibition function, inattention to stimuli, and stability of processing time develop first. Discrimination ability subsequently increases based on these developments, and finally processing time is reduced. [source]