Language impairments in traumatic brain injury

Enhancing Executive Function and Neural Health in Bipolar Disorder through Reasoning Training

“…The novel aspects of this pilot trial are testing a cognitive training protocol (SMART) and brain measurement (CBF) that have previously shown promise in studies focused on harnessing cognitive and neural plasticity. As stated above, SMART teaches top–down, metacognitive strategies that can be utilized in everyday life and its efficacy is supported by prior evidence of improved executive function and frontoparietal networks in other clinical and healthy populations (Chapman et al, 2015, 2016; Vas et al, 2015; Mudar et al, 2016). Previous neurobehavioral interventions in BD have focused largely on improving the psychological health with only more recent focus on targeting the cognitive deficits that have now been well-documented (Deckersbach et al, 2010; Preiss et al, 2013; Torrent et al, 2013; Demant et al, 2015).…”

“…Therefore, as a tightly regulated system, resting CBF is remarkably consistent and an important biomarker (Raichle and Gusnard, 2002). Additionally, results from a growing number of studies reveal that resting state CBF may represent a promising neural marker of brain response to distinct interventions across clinical populations (Mozolic et al, 2010; Vas et al, 2015). These studies identify a correlation between increased CBF and improved cognitive function with healthy agers and those with brain injury (Takeuchi et al, 2013; Chapman et al, 2015, 2016; Vas et al, 2015).…”

“…Complex abstraction is also referred to as gist reasoning. The TOSL is an assessment that has been previously utilized as a criterion-referenced measure of ability to abstract meaning from complex information in typically developing youth (Chapman et al, 2012; Motes et al, 2014), healthy adults (Anand et al, 2011; Vas et al, 2016a), adults with MCI (Mudar et al, 2016), and adults and youth with TBI (Vas et al, 2011, 2015, 2016a; Cook et al, 2014). Recent evidence supports TOSL as both a sensitive and specific metric of complex abstraction ability (Vas et al, 2016b).…”

“…Randomized trials comparing reasoning training to a new learning intervention in adults with TBI in chronic stages post-injury showed significant gains in abstraction, memory, executive functions of working memory and switching, non-verbal reasoning, and daily function (Vas et al, 2011). A larger randomized trial in adults with TBI found similar improvements in measures of executive function, memory and daily function (Vas et al, 2015). In this latter study, the reasoning training was shown to significantly improve psychological health with reduced depression and stress-related symptoms.…”

“…Based on principles of experience-driven plasticity, the likelihood of increased usage throughout daily life may increase chances of achieving spill-over affects into other cognitive domains, maximizing treatment efforts. For instance, in the aforementioned studies which trained reasoning, participants showed improvements in the primary outcome measure, as well as generalized cognitive benefits in other secondary outcome measures of memory and executive functioning skills (Vas et al, 2011, 2015; Chapman et al, 2015). …”