Fluência verbal e variáveis sociodemográficas no processo de envelhecimento: um estudo epidemiológico

Abstract

ResumoA fluência verbal é um marcador das funções executivas, envolvendo a capacidade de busca e recuperação de dados, habilidades de organização, autorregulação e memória operacional. Objetivou-se identificar a existência de diferenças em fluência verbal (número de animais, categorias, grupos e alternância de categorias) entre sexo, faixas etárias, faixas de escolaridade e renda. Trezentos e oitenta e três idosos (60 anos ou mais) participaram de estudo epidemiológico de corte transversal. Foram aplicadas questões sociodemográficas e o teste de fluência verbal categoria animais. As variáveis do teste de fluência verbal foram influenciadas por sexo, idade e escolaridade, com melhor desempenho a favor dos homens, dos participantes mais jovens e mais escolarizados. Os resultados confirmam que o desempenho em fluência verbal deve ser interpretado à luz das informações sociodemográficas. Palavras-chave: Fluência Verbal; Funções Executivas; Idosos; Envelhecimento. AbstractVerbal fluency is a marker of executive functions which involves the ability of searching and retrieving information, organizational skills, self-regulation and working memory. The objective of this paper was to identify differences in verbal fluency (number of animals, categories, clusters and category switching) associated with gender, age, education and income. Three hundred eighty three elderly (60 or older) participated in an epidemiological cross-sectional study. Participants answered sociodemographic questions and completed the verbal fluency animal category test. Verbal fluency variables were influenced by gender, age, and education. Higher performance was reported for men and participants with lower age and higher education. Results confirm that performance in verbal fluency must be interpreted in the light of sociodemographic information.

Methodological Criteria for Scoring Clustering and Switching in Verbal Fluency Tasks

“…We attempted to contribute to the analysis of the cognitive components underlying VF performance to assist in refining the diagnosis and prognosis of neuropsychological performances. Up to date, the Brazilian studies using this method (Becker et al, 2014;Bertola et al, 2014;Brucki & Rocha, 2004;Lopes et al, 2009;Silva et al, 2011;Toazza et al, 2014) to answer the research questions did not describe the scoring rules in detail so as to enable accurate replication.…”

“…In SVF tasks, the words retrieved should belong to a certain category, such as fruits, animals and clothes; whereas animals is the most commonly used category in the literature (Charchat-Fichman, Oliveira, & Silva, 2011). Most Brazilian studies on VF include SVF tasks using the animal category (Araujo et al, 2011;Brucki, Malheiros, Okamoto, & Bertolucci, 1997;Brucki & Rocha, 2004;Caramelli, Carthery-Goulart, Porto, CharchatFichman, & Nitrini, 2007;Lopes et al, 2009;Silva, Yassuda, Guimarães, & Florindo, 2011). There is a small number of studies using fruits (Paula et al, 2010), body parts (Malloy-Diniz et al, 2007), and clothes (Fonseca, Parente, Côté, Ska, & Joanette, 2008;Moraes et al, 2014;Zimmermann, Parente, Joanette, & Fonseca, 2014).…”

Phonemic and semantic verbal fluency tasks: normative data for elderly Brazilians

“…Although the purpose of the activities is the same (evoking words), patients may present different performances according to the modality used and the type of stimulus chosen (Beausoleil, Monetta, Leblanc, & Joanette, 2001), since there are less frequent words that begin with specifi c letter (letter B versus X), as well as more restricted semantic fi elds (food versus color). In addition, sociodemographic characteristics, such as age and education, have been reported as variables that infl uence performance in both modalities (Bolla, Gray, Resnick, Galante, & Kawas, 1998;Brucki & Rocha, 2004;Carnero, Lendínez, Maestre, & Zunzunegui, 1999;Kempler, Teng, Dick, Taussig, & Davis, 1998;Silva, Yassuda, Guimarães, & Florindo, 2011). Other authors also point to the contribution of gender (Kempler et al, 1998;Silva et al, 2011).…”

“…In addition, sociodemographic characteristics, such as age and education, have been reported as variables that infl uence performance in both modalities (Bolla, Gray, Resnick, Galante, & Kawas, 1998;Brucki & Rocha, 2004;Carnero, Lendínez, Maestre, & Zunzunegui, 1999;Kempler, Teng, Dick, Taussig, & Davis, 1998;Silva, Yassuda, Guimarães, & Florindo, 2011). Other authors also point to the contribution of gender (Kempler et al, 1998;Silva et al, 2011).…”

“…Nevertheless, there is a perceived diffi culty with advancing age in activities that relate language and memory (Parente, Saboskinsk, Ferreira, & Nespoulous, 1999). Thus verbal fl uency tasks are used as identifi ers of early cognitive decline (Chaves et al, 2011;Silva et al, 2011). Verbal fl uency tests are considered primarily as screening tools able to identify early cases of brain deterioration.…”