bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
C-67 Cognitive Function in an 8-Year-Old Girl with Gray Matter Heterotopia Without Evidence of Seizures
Authors: Shapiro S , Irani F 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
Heterotopia is a rare condition typically identified in the context of seizures. This case study presents a cognitive profile in a child with a history of heterotopia and hearing problems but without any known seizure history.

Method
An 8-year-old referred for evaluation by her neurologist due to concerns about persistent academic and social difficulties. Medical history was remarkable for small size, hearing problems, multiple pressure equalization tube placements, food allergies, and a left lateral ventricle gray matter heterotopia found on brain MRI. EEG was normal. Genetic testing found no dysmorphia. Developmental history was remarkable for delayed speech and early intervention, as well as social delays. She began receiving special education for learning disability and speech/language impairment in first grade.

Results
WISC-V IQ was Low Average and significantly lower than GAI. WMI was Below Average and PSI was Low. Language performance was variable. Visual scanning was Below Average. Verbal memory ranged from Below Average to Impaired, with worse performance on WRAML-2 Story Memory subtests. Attention and hyperactivity deficits were found on a continuous performance task. Executive function was Average to Above Average on phonemic fluency, category switching and Stroop tasks. BASC-3 parent ratings indicated greatest concerns in areas of atypicality, withdrawal, and adaptive skills. ABAS-3 indicated Low conceptual skills and Average to Low Average skills on other composites.

Conclusions
Aside from language deficits likely related to hearing problems, these findings indicated deficits in visual scanning, attention/hyperactivity, visually-based processing speed, and memory in the context of heterotopia without seizures. Social delays may be multifactorial.
A-29 The Mediating Effects of Personality on Sleep Quality and Executive Dysfunction
Authors: Harrell M , Taylor S , Beach J , Aita S , McCaskey V , Calamia M , Hill B 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
This study examined the relationship between personality traits, sleep quality, and executive dysfunction.

Method
Participants were 195 college students (65.6% female; 53.8% Caucasian, 33.3% African American, 4.1% Asian,; age range 17 – 46 years, Mage = 19.58 years, SD = 3.41; 73.3% no psychological diagnosis) who completed the following attention tasks: 120-item IPIP Neo (NEO), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning Rating Scale-IV (BDEFS-IV).

Results
Mediation analyses were tested using 5000 bootstrapping resamples with bias-corrected 95% confidence estimates to investigate if personality traits mediated the effect of sleep quality on executive dysfunction. The total effect between PSQI and BDEFS-IV was significant, F(1,193) = 15.80, p < .001, r2 = .08, 95% CI = 1.79, 5.31). The model was significant when examining the relationship between the independent variable, mediators, and dependent variable, F(6,188) = 29.31, p < .000, r2 = .48. Three of the five mediators demonstrated significant indirect effects: neuroticism, (B = 1.07, t (188) = 5.39, p = .000, 95% CI = .68, 1.46), extraversion (B = .63, t (188) = 3.46, p = .000, 95% CI = .27, .99), and conscientiousness (B = -1.91, t (188) = -7.46, p = .000, 95% CI = -2.42, -1.41). The direct effect of PSQI and BDEFS-IV was not significant (B = .731, t (188) = .99, p = .32, 95% CI = -.72, 2.18) when controlling for all five mediators, confirming a full mediation.

Conclusions
Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Conscientiousness significantly mediated the relationship between self-reported sleep quality and executive dysfunction.
A-42 Case of Persistent Amnestic Syndrome due to Small Right-Sided Retrosplenial Lacunes
Authors: Inkelis S , Thomas K , Bangen K , Weigand A , Thayer R , Delano-Wood L , Bondi M 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
Lesions to the retrosplenial cortex secondary to acute stroke or tumor have been shown to disrupt Papez’s circuit due to disconnection between the anterior thalamus and hippocampus, via the posterior cingulate, producing an amnestic syndrome. This case demonstrates how small but strategic lacunes in this region may produce memory deficits.

Method
The patient is a 52-year-old, right-handed, African-American woman with 18 years of education who reported memory changes over the last 8 years (e.g., misplacing items, forgetting details of conversations). Her medical history was notable for BMI of 31 and borderline diabetes. She completed structural magnetic resonance imaging 6 years prior to, and concordant with, her neuropsychological evaluation. Both scans showed two small (2-3 mm) right-sided retrosplenial lacunes, without evidence of hippocampal or global volume loss over the 6-year span.

Results
Her neurocognitive profile was characterized by impairments in both verbal (stories, word-list) and figural memory, with relative strengths in attention, processing speed, and executive functioning. Across memory measures, she performed in the low average-to-mildly impaired range on immediate recall, mildly-to-severely impaired range on delayed recall, and did not benefit from yes-no recognition format. She demonstrated additional features of an amnestic profile, including flat learning slope, recency effect, elevated cued recall intrusion errors, and very elevated false positive errors on recognition.

Conclusions
Findings expand upon the existing literature to show that chronic, small retrosplenial lacunes can disrupt the connection between the anterior thalamus and hippocampus, resulting in a clinical presentation of circumscribed memory impairment that persists years beyond acute vascular changes.
A-53 Exploring the Relationship between Spoken Language and Verbal Short-term Memory Assessment Tasks
Authors: Davis M , Moses J , Rivera J , Guerra A , Hakinson K 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
Examine whether performance on spoken language assessment measures may be associated with performance at different phases of verbal learning and recall tasks.

Method
The assessment records of 222 American Veterans with diverse neuropsychiatric conditions were analyzed using Exploratory Factor Analyses. There were no exclusion criteria. All participants completed the Visual Naming (VisNam), Sentence Repetition (SenRep), Controlled Word Association (COWA), and Token Tests of the Multilingual Aphasia Examination (MAE), and Benton Serial Digit Learning Test – 8 Digits (SDL8). Individual assessment instruments were factored using Principal Component Analyses (PCA). A three-factor solution of the SDL-8 was co-factored with the spoken language components of the MAE to identify common sources of variance.

Results
A three-factor solution of the SDL8 separated trials into three overlapping factors consisting of early (SDL8_Early), middle (SDL8_Middle), and late (SDL8_Late) trials. Co-factoring the three new scales with the verbal components of the MAE produced a five-factor model explaining 84.563% of the shared variance: 1) SDL8_Early loaded with SenRep, 2) SDL8_Middle loaded with SenRep, 3) SDL8_Late loaded with Token, 4) SDL8_Late loaded with COWA, and 5) VisNam alone formed the fifth factor.

Conclusions
The results suggest that rote repetition is largely associated with early trials and slightly associated with middle trials, while late trials are largely associated with auditory comprehension and slightly associated with verbal fluency. This may be indicative of a shift in use of spoken language abilities to accommodate increasing levels of complexity in presented verbal short-term memory tasks and thus reflective of a change on learning strategy to optimize performance.
A-69 A Follow Up Study of Reliable Digit Span Performance in Children with Academic Difficulties
Authors: Pease L , Ernst W , Kneavel M , Brosof A 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objectives
This study sought to describe reliable digit span (RDS) performance in a sample of children referred for evaluation due to academic difficulties and provide preliminary information regarding its utility as a performance validity test (PVT) in this population.

Methods
The sample included 110 children (M = 11.91, SD = 3.34, Range = 6-16) evaluated in a college affiliated psychological services clinic. Measures included the WISC-IV or WISC-V and the WIAT-III. A subset of the sample (n = 30) was administered the Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM).

Results
The average RDS performance was 8.2 (SD = 2.0, Range 4-15). Using the previously established adult cutoff of ≤7, 55.5% of the sample passed. At a cutoff of ≤6, 86.4% of the sample passed, which approaches a 90% pass rate recommended in prior literature. RDS was correlated with age r(n = 110) = .53, p < .001, education r(n = 110) = .50, p < .001, FSIQ r(n = 110) = .31, p < .01, the WIAT Reading Composite r(n = 110) = .34, p < .001, and the WIAT Mathematics Composite r(n = 110) = .29, p < .01. The TOMM pass rate was 100% and all children in that subset scored above the RDS cutoff of ≤6.

Conclusions
RDS is potentially useful as an embedded PVT for children referred for evaluation due to academic difficulties. Key variables including age, FSIQ, and academic performance correlated with RDS, which requires consideration of those variables when interpreting RDS performance. Additional research is needed to determine appropriate cutoff scores given the potential influence of variables such as FSIQ and age on RDS performance for this population.
A-76 Specificity of the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status Digit Span as a Validity Indicator in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia
Authors: Quattlebaum J , Martin P , Moltisanti A , Clark H , Schroeder R 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
The current study sought to examine the specificity of Digit Span (DS) scaled score from the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) as a performance validity test (PVT) in older adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) or dementia.

Method
Archival data were utilized and included 195 patients (mean age = 72.8; mean education = 13.2) who underwent outpatient neuropsychological evaluations. Cases that had missing data, did not meet criteria for a neurocognitive disorder, or whose performance was deemed invalid were excluded. Participants were classified according to their evaluation diagnosis of MCI (n = 72; mean RBANS total score = 86.8) or dementia. Those diagnosed with dementia were divided by MoCA performance and categorized as mild dementia (n = 90; MoCA≥15; mean RBANS Total Score = 71.0) or moderate dementia (n = 33; MoCA < 15; mean RBANS Total Score = 55.9). Scaled score frequencies were analyzed to calculate specificity for each group.

Results
An RBANS DS scaled score of ≤4 occurred infrequently in older adults with MCI and mild dementia, resulting in specificity values of 0.93 and 0.90, respectively. In moderate dementia, specificity fell to 0.68 when using a scaled score of ≤4, with a cutoff of ≤2 required to maintain adequate specificity.

Conclusions
Findings suggest utility of RBANS DS scaled score as a PVT in dementia evaluations provided use of appropriate cutoffs. A more stringent cutoff was required in examinees with moderate dementia relative to patients with MCI and mild dementia. Future research should examine the RBANS DS sensitivity to invalid performance, as well as DS specificity across specific etiologies of MCI and dementia.
A-80 Global Neuropsychological Assessment (GNA): Preliminary Evidence of Clinical Utility
Authors: Raines J , Carroll A , Morra L , Schretlen D 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
The Global Neuropsychological Assessment (GNA) is an 18-minute cognitive test battery with seven subtests that is being translated into multiple languages and standardized worldwide. This study seeks to evaluate the GNA’s ability to discriminate patients from healthy controls.

Data Selection
We are recruiting adults who are referred to the Johns Hopkins Medical Psychology Clinic for neuropsychological assessment, along with caregivers or family members who accompany them for this ongoing study. We have administered the GNA to 10 patients with mild cognitive impairment or another disorder and 22 healthy controls to date.

Data Synthesis
Patients and healthy controls did not differ on age, sex, or years of education.Independent samples t-tests showed that patients performed worse than healthy controls (p < 0.05) on 14 measures derived from five of seven GNA subtests. These included measures of episodic memory, processing speed, semantic verbal fluency, set-switching, and spatial working memory. Cohen’s d effect sizes of 1.0 to 2.2 were observed. The groups did not differ on tests of digit repetition or an anxiety/depression screener (Patient Health Questionnaire-4) although these revealed small to medium group differences (Cohen’s ds = 0.27 to 0.71) as well.

Conclusions
Five of seven GNA subtests effectively discriminated controls from patients with mixed cognitive disorders. If effect sizes found for the other two GNA subtests persist, they also will show significant group differences as the sample sizes increase. In related studies, we are examining inter-form equivalence and other psychometric properties of the GNA.
B-13 Differences in Language Function Between Patients with Nonepileptic Seizures (NES) and Epilepsy on an Epilepsy Monitoring Unit
Authors: Garrett R , Gerkin R , Pardini J 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
To examine potential differences in language function among nonepileptic seizures (NES) and epilepsy patients.

Method
Data were acquired via IRB approved retrospective chart review. Subjects were 60 patients who completed an inpatient stay in the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit of a southwestern hospital. 33 were diagnosed with NES, 13 were diagnosed with epilepsy originating in right hemisphere (ER), and 14 were diagnosed with epilepsy originating in the left hemisphere (EL). Patients were 65.9 % female, with a mean age of 40.5 (SD = 13.7). As part of a standard inpatient neuropsychological test battery, participants completed language tests that consisted of verbal fluency (FAS and Animals), Boston Naming Test, Wechsler Test of Adult Reading (WTAR), and Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence-Second Edition (WASI-2) Similarities and Vocabulary subtests.

Results
ANOVA testing revealed significant between group differences in scores on the Animals verbal fluency test (F = 7.72, p = .008 for linear trend). Other measures did not achieve significance. NES participants had the highest Animal fluency scores (mean T = 49.28), followed by ER (47.73) then EL patients (43.27). WTAR score did not moderate this effect. Gender did moderate the effect, with male ER and EL subjects demonstrating lower Animal naming scores than their female counterparts (p = .037).

Conclusion
Animal naming was the only language-based variable found to differ in this sample of NES and epilepsy patients. Those with EL had the lowest scores on this measure, consistent with prior research that has found language deficits in this population.
B-14 Differences in Performance of Memory Tasks in HIV + Cocaine and Methamphetamine Users
Authors: Nemanim N , Hinkin C , Singer E 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
Approximately 1.2 million people in the U.S. are infected with HIV (HIV+), many of whom use stimulants. Recent meta-analytical work supports differing neurocognitive profiles associated with methamphetamine and cocaine use in seronegative individuals, especially in the domain of memory. Both substances are associated with deficits in verbal working memory, while only methamphetamine is associated with deficits in delayed contextual verbal memory and delayed visual memory. This study serves to replicate these findings amongst an HIV+ sample.

Methods
The performance of 88 HIV+ cocaine users and 49 HIV+ methamphetamine users were compared on the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test–Revised and Brief Visuospatial Memory Test–Revised. Participants were actively enrolled in National Neurological AIDS Bank and over the age of 18. Chi-square and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used to compare group equivalence. Groups differed on gender and race but not on age, virologic variables, or education. ANOVA and Independent T-tests were used to compare performance.

Results
Both groups exhibited deficits on visual, verbal, and delayed verbal memory tasks but differences between the two groups were not significant (p>.05). Methamphetamine users performed significantly worse than cocaine users on the delayed visual memory task (F (1,131) = 9.27, p = .003, η² = .066).

Conclusions
Consistent with findings in seronegative individuals, HIV+ methamphetamine users performed more poorly than cocaine users on tasks involving delayed visual memory. However, this study did not replicate findings involving delayed verbal memory. Further work is necessary to understand the impact of methamphetamine and cocaine use in HIV+ individuals.
B-15 Engagement in Cognitively-Demanding Activities in Daily Life is Associated with Neurocognitive Test Performance and Perceived Cognitive Difficulties Among Adults With and Without HIV
Authors: Paolillo E , Hussain M , Moore R , Moore D , Heaton R 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
Assessing daily activities is important for understanding how cognitive abilities affect everyday functioning. We evaluated a new measure capturing engagement in cognitively-demanding activities among people with and without HIV, and examined associations with neurocognitive test performance and perceived cognitive difficulties.

Method
Participants included 79 adults (59 HIV+, 20 HIV-) enrolled in studies at UCSD (mean age = 55.1; SD = 13.1). Domain-specific composite scaled scores measured neurocognitive functioning as continuous variables. Demographically-corrected global deficit scores determined neurocognitive impairment. Perceived cognitive difficulties were self-reported via the Everyday Cognition scale (ECog). The newly created, self-report Frequency and Difficulty of Activities Scale (FDAS) measured frequency of engagement in 27 cognitively-demanding activities [0 = Never to 10 = Once a day or more] in the last month. FDAS “total frequency score” sums all frequency ratings. Participants also rated difficulty performing each FDAS activity [0 = Not at all to 10 = Extremely]. FDAS “difficult-activity score” sums frequency ratings only for activities that participants identified as difficult for them (i.e., difficulty rating >75th percentile of sample).

Results
Higher FDAS total frequency scores correlated with better verbal fluency (r = 0.26, p = 0.019) and processing speed (r = 0.24, p = 0.030). Multiple regression revealed a significant interaction between cognitive impairment and frequency of engagement in difficult activities (b = 0.34, 95%CI = 0.18-0.50, p < 0.001), such that higher FDAS difficult-activity scores related to more perceived cognitive difficulties only among cognitively impaired participants.

Conclusion
This study explored use of a new measure of complex daily activities to aid neuropsychological interpretation. Results suggest that effects of neurocognitive impairment on perceived cognitive difficulties may only be apparent if individuals are attempting to perform challenging everyday tasks.
Automated scoring of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test using a deep-learning algorithm
Authors: Vogt J , Kloosterman H , Vermeent S , Van Elswijk G , Dotsch R , Schmand B 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
To validate a fully automated scoring algorithm for the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (ROCFT) by comparing the scoring results of the algorithm to the results of human raters.

Method
The algorithm consisted of a cascade of deep neural networks which were trained on human rater scores to extract the 18 segments of the figure, and to quantify the patient’s performance. Algorithm results were compared to six expert raters for 303 drawings. We tested whether the average correlation between algorithm scores and scores by all human raters was equivalent to the average inter-rater correlation (with equality bound Δr < .05). The immediate and delayed recall trial were used; the copy trial showed a strong ceiling effect.

Results
The mean Pearson correlation between raters was .94 (SD = 0.01). The correlation between to algorithm and the raters was .88 (SD = 0.02). A two-one-sided t-tests (TOST) equivalence test showed that these correlations were not strictly equivalent, t(5) = 4.02, p = .995, 95% CI [0.35, 0.52].

Conclusions
Although not strictly equivalent to human ratings, the algorithm’s performance is high, approaching a level of reliability found among human raters. We expect that improved individual segment detection will bring the algorithm scoring accuracy on par with that of human raters. Algorithmic scoring of the ROCFT will likely save valuable time and lead to higher levels of standardization in clinical practice.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Algorithms For Informing the Diagnostic Process of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia
Authors: Gardner J 
Published: August 2019

Abstract

Objective
Differentiating between a clinical diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and dementia is difficult due to expansive data needs in concert with ambiguity of clinical criteria. Novel artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms provide potential avenues for efficiently analyzing data sets and informing clinical judgment in distinguishing MCI from dementia. To date no formal meta-analysis of extant studies has been conducted to compare the efficacy of such procedures. A meta-analysis was conducted to synthesize the sensitivity and specificity of AI and machine learning programs in distinguishing between MCI and dementia as compared to traditional diagnostic protocols.

Data Selection
A search of studies using EBSCOhost databases using the keywords: “artificial intelligence,” “machine learning,” “MCI,” and “dementia” retrieved a total of 127 studies. Excluded were 106 studies due to non-reporting of sensitivity and specificity data. In total, 21 studies were included in the present meta-analysis.

Data Synthesis
Sensitivity and specificity data as well as the number of true-false categorizations were extracted and analyzed using OpenMeta[Analyst]. A bivariate correlation produced a summary point with sensitivity of 82% and specificity of 82%. A follow-up Rutter-Gatsonis multivariate correlation HSROC curve was created to correct for significant correlations (47%), and produced an adjusted mean specificity of 79% and sensitivity of 83%.

Conclusions
Results suggest AI and machine-learning algorithms are effective in distinguishing MCI from dementia. AI procedures have potential in aiding clinical judgment given a larger body of empirical research.