Changes in Brain Volume Resulting from Cognitive Intervention by Means of the Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment Program in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI): A Pilot Study

Abstract

There is increasing interest in identifying biological and imaging markers for the early detection of neurocognitive decline. In addition, non-pharmacological strategies including physical exercise and cognitive interventions may be beneficial for those developing cognitive impairment. The Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment (FIE) Program is a cognitive intervention based on Structural Cognitive Modifiability and the Mediated Learning Experience (MLE) and aims to promote problem-solving strategies and metacognitive abilities. The FIE program uses a variety of instruments to enhance the cognitive capacity of the individual as a result of mediation. A specific version of the FIE program was developed for the cognitive enhancement of older adults, focusing on strengthening orientation skills, categorization skills, deductive reasoning and memory. We performed a prospective interventional pilot observational study on older subjects with MCI who participated in 30 mediated FIE sessions (two sessions weekly for 15 weeks). Of the 21 subjects who completed the study, there was a significant improvement in memory on the Neurotrax battery comparing pre- and post-intervention scores (pre: M=95.3, SD=12.2, post: M=101.2, SD=7.9, p<.05). Complete sets of anatomical MRI data for voxel-based morphometry, taken at the beginning and the end of the study, were obtained from 16 participants (mean age 83.5 years). Voxel-based morphometry showed an unexpected increase in grey matter (GM) in the anterolateral occipital border and the middle cingulate cortex. These initial findings of our pilot study support the design of randomized trials to evaluate the effect of cognitive training using the FIE Program on brain volumes and cognitive function.

Clinical Feasibility of Automated Brain Tissue and Myelin Volumetry of Normal Brian Using Synthetic Magnetic Resonance Imaging With Fast Imaging Protocol: A Single-Center Pilot Study

“…Segmentation and volume estimation of brain tissues, such as gray matter (GM), white matter (WM), and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), are important in evaluating neurological disorders, 1,2 such as WM hyperintensity, 3 multiple sclerosis, 4 traumatic brain injury, 5 Alzheimer disease, 6 and other forms of dementia 7 . Quantitative brain volume segmentation can also be helpful in providing additional objective data on treatment evaluation and longitudinal follow-up of disease progression 8 .…”