AUTHOR=Kalbe Elke , Roheger Mandy , Paluszak Kay , Meyer Julia , Becker Jutta , Fink Gereon R. , Kukolja Juraj , Rahn Andreas , Szabados Florian , Wirth Brunhilde , Kessler Josef 

TITLE=Effects of a Cognitive Training With and Without Additional Physical Activity in Healthy Older Adults: A Follow-Up 1 Year After a Randomized Controlled Trial

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/aging-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2018.00407

DOI=10.3389/fnagi.2018.00407

ISSN=1663-4365

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> Combining cognitive training (CT) with physical activity (CPT) has been suggested to be most effective in maintaining cognition in healthy older adults, but data are scarce and inconsistent regarding long-term effects (follow-up; FU) and predictors of success.</p><p><bold>Objective:</bold> To investigate the 1-year FU effects of CPT versus CT and CPT plus counseling (CPT+C), and to identify predictors for CPT success at FU.</p><p><bold>Setting and Participants:</bold> We included 55 healthy older participants in the data analyses; 18 participants (CPT group) were used for the predictor analysis.</p><p><bold>Interventions:</bold> In a randomized controlled trial, participants conducted a CT, CPT, or CPT+C for 7 weeks.</p><p><bold>Outcome Measures:</bold> Overall cognition, verbal, figural, and working memory, verbal fluency, attention, planning, and visuo-construction.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> While within-group comparisons showed cognitive improvements for all types of training, only one significant interaction <italic>Group</italic> × <italic>Time</italic> favoring CPT in comparison to CPT+C was found for overall cognition and verbal long-term memory. The most consistent predictor for CPT success (in verbal short-term memory, verbal fluency, attention) was an initial low baseline performance. Lower education predicted working memory gains. Higher levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and lower levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor at baseline (BDNF) predicted alternating letter verbal fluency gains.</p><p><bold>Discussion:</bold> Within-group comparisons indicate that all used training types are helpful to maintain cognition. The fact that cognitive and sociodemographic data as well as nerve growth factors predict long-term benefits of CPT contributes to the understanding of the mechanisms underlying training success and may ultimately help to adapt training to individual profiles.</p><p><bold>Clinical Trial Registration:</bold> WHO ICTRP (<ext-link ext-link-type="uri" xlink:href="http://apps.who.int/trialsearch/" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">http://apps.who.int/trialsearch/</ext-link>), identifier DRKS00005194.</p>