Selective impairment of the executive attentional network in adult patients with neurofibromatosis type 1

Wang, Xingchao; Wu, Qiong; Tang, Hanlu; Zhao, Fu; Yang, Zhijun; Wang, Bo; Wang, Zhenmin; Wu, Yanhong; Fan, Jin; Liu, Pinan

doi:10.1097/wnr.0000000000001275

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Performance on an isolated task could depend on several other factors, including deficits in other cognitive processes, not only WM. As our previous study confirmed that NF1 patients presented selective impairment of the executive attentional network (Wang et al, 2019 ). We may find out the potential interaction of multiple cognitive functions and their effect on WM in further study.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

“…The disease not only causes neurofibromas, café-au-lait macules, optic pathway gliomas, and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors but also leads to structural changes in the brain (Duarte et al, 2014 ; Gutmann et al, 2017 ) as well as various cognitive dysfunctions (Torres Nupan et al, 2017 ). Compared with unaffected peers, individuals with NF1 usually exhibit deficits in many important cognitive domains, such as IQ (Lehtonen et al, 2015 ), visual perception (Bulgheroni et al, 2019 ), language (Cosyns et al, 2012 ), reading (Torres Nupan et al, 2017 ), calculation (Burgio et al, 2017 ), attention (Lehtonen et al, 2013 ; Wang et al, 2019 ), and executive function (Beaussart et al, 2018 ). In addition, working memory (WM), an important cognitive function, has received increasing attention from clinicians.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Visuospatial but Not Verbal Working Memory Deficits in Adult Patients With Neurofibromatosis Type 1

Tang

et al. 2021

Front. Psychol.

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Background: Cognitive dysfunction is one of the main symptoms of neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). As an important cognitive function, working memory (WM) has rarely been systematically analyzed in NF1 by isolating the particular domain of WM, and existing data involving WM in adult patients with NF1 are insufficient. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of different types of WM in NF1 from the perspective of the adult population.Method: We comprehensively analyzed WM in both verbal and visuospatial WM domains by using the N-back task (including the verbal N-back task and the visuospatial N-back task) in 31 adults with NF1 and 34 healthy controls matched for age, gender, education levels, and general cognitive status. The accuracy and reaction times (RTs) in the N-back task were entered into mixed-design ANOVA.Results: Compared with healthy controls, adults with NF1 presented significantly lower mean accuracy and longer RTs in the visuospatial N-back task. However, no significant difference was found between the NF1 group and healthy controls in the verbal N-back task.Conclusions: The present study suggested that adults with NF1 might have deficits in visuospatial WM. We did not find evidence for verbal WM deficits in adult patients with NF1. Our findings supplement and refine the existing data on WM in the context of NF1.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Visuospatial but Not Verbal Working Memory Deficits in Adult Patients With Neurofibromatosis Type 1

Tang

et al. 2021

Front. Psychol.

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“…Furthermore, previous research has revealed links between unemployment and depression (Zuelke et al, 2018 ), with longer periods of unemployment being particularly impactful on mental well‐being (Latsou & Geitona, 2018 ). However, past research have shown that many adults with NF1 report delays in completing their education (Doser et al, 2019 ), likely due in part to the cognitive and attention problems that are common among these individuals (Descheemaeker et al, 2013 ; X. Wang et al, 2019 ). These educational delays and cognitive impairments may limit employment opportunities, making the possibility of losing income even more concerning.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of the coronavirus pandemic on mental health and health care in adults with neurofibromatosis: Patient perspectives from an online survey

Wolters

Reda

Martin

et al. 2021

American J of Med Genetics Pt A

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The coronavirus pandemic increased anxiety and stress and prevented access to health care worldwide; it is unclear how COVID‐19 affected adults with a multisystem genetic disorder such as neurofibromatosis (NF). An anonymous online survey was distributed through an international registry and foundations to adults with NF (June–August 2020) to assess the impact of the pandemic on mental health and NF health care. Six hundred and thirteen adults (18–81 years; M = 45.7) with NF1 (77.8%), NF2 (14.2%), and schwannomatosis (7.8%) provided complete responses. Respondents rated moderate‐to‐high amounts of worry about the impact of COVID‐19 on their emotional (46.3%) and physical health (46.7%), and 54.8% endorsed moderate‐to‐high pandemic‐related stress. Adults with diagnosed/suspected mental health disorders or moderate‐to‐severe NF symptom impact as well as females endorsed higher COVID‐19 stress ( p s < 0.01). Less than half who missed a doctor's appointment for their NF care (43.4%) used telehealth. Of these, 33.3% and 46.2% reported that telehealth met their needs to a moderate or high degree, respectively. Results indicated that subgroups of adults with NF experience higher COVID‐19‐related worries and stress and may need additional support. Furthermore, telehealth is under‐utilized and could help NF providers connect with patients, although improved delivery and patient training may facilitate expanded use of these services.

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“…The disease not only causes neuro bromas, café-au-lait macules, optic pathway gliomas and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors but also leads to structural changes in the brain [1,2] as well as various cognitive dysfunctions [3] . Compared with unaffected peers, individuals with NF1 usually exhibit de cits in many important cognitive domains, such as IQ [4] , visual perception [5] , language [6] , reading [3] , calculation [7] , attention de cit [8,9] and executive function [10] . In addition, working memory (WM), an important advanced cognitive function, has received increasing attention from clinicians.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impaired visuospatial but not verbal working memory in adult patients with neurofibromatosis type 1

Tang

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Purpose Cognitive dysfunction is one of the main symptoms of neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). As an important advanced cognitive function, working memory (WM) has rarely been systematically analyzed in NF1 by isolating the particular domain of WM, and existing data involving WM in adults with NF1 are controversial. This study aimed to clarify the characteristics of WM in NF1 from the perspective of the adult population. Methods We comprehensively analyzed WM in both verbal and visuospatial WM domains by using the N-back task (including the verbal N-back task and the visuospatial N-back task) in 31 adults with NF1 and 34 healthy controls (HCs) matched for age, gender, education levels and general cognitive status. The accuracy and reaction times (RTs) in the N-back task were entered into repeated-measure ANOVAs. Results Compared with HCs, adults with NF1 presented significantly lower mean accuracy (F(1,62) = 4.60, p = 0.036) and longer RTs (F(1,62) = 4.91, p = 0.03) in the visuospatial N-back task, and the gap became more obvious as the difficulty levels increased. However, no significant difference was found in the verbal N-back task (accuracy: F(1,62) = 2.41, p = 0.13; RTs: F(1,62) < 1). Conclusions Our study found that adults with NF1 had selective deficits in WM (impaired visuospatial but not verbal WM), and visuospatial WM dysfunction became obvious as memory load increased. Our findings supplement and refine the existing data on WM in NF1 disorder and demonstrate functional independence between verbal and visuospatial WM.

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Selective impairment of the executive attentional network in adult patients with neurofibromatosis type 1

Cited by 7 publications

References 24 publications

Visuospatial but Not Verbal Working Memory Deficits in Adult Patients With Neurofibromatosis Type 1

Visuospatial but Not Verbal Working Memory Deficits in Adult Patients With Neurofibromatosis Type 1

Impact of the coronavirus pandemic on mental health and health care in adults with neurofibromatosis: Patient perspectives from an online survey

Impaired visuospatial but not verbal working memory in adult patients with neurofibromatosis type 1

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