CogXergaming to Promote Physical Activity and Cognitive Function in Frail Older Adults

Study Summary

Due to the age associated sarcopenia and reduced cardiovascular fitness, frail older adults experience significant decrease in physical function which comprises of mobility, endurance, muscle strength and balance control. The impaired physical function results in poor quality of life and reduced community participation, leading to increased frailty and long-term disability. Further, compared to cognitively intact frail older adults, cognitively impaired frail older adults experience greater deterioration of such physical function, specifically during dual-task performances (i.e., simultaneous performance of cognitive and motor task). This deterioration occurs due to increased cognitive-motor interference as a result of dual-tasking and is known to increase exhaustion among frail older adults. Previous studies have used multicomponent training and have shown to improve physical function and maintain cardiovascular functioning. However, the capacity of such interventions to improve cognitive function along with physical function is not known or unclear. Further, the concurrent comorbidities that occur along with psychosocial issues such as depression present as barriers and lead to reduced compliance to therapy leaving only a few of them to benefit from it. Alternate forms of therapy such as exergaming with explicit cognitive training has shown promising effects in improving motor and motor function in disabled populations. These studies use a cost-effective, off the shelf device such as Nintendo Wii or Microsoft Kinect to deliver the training which is easily available and clinically translatable. Further, such training has demonstrated increase in brain connectivity enhancing cognitive functions associated with balance control. However, there is limited literature examining the effect of exergaming in older frail population and the efficacy of such training is unknown. Therefore, this study proposes a randomized controlled trial to examine the feasibility of CogXerga

Primary Outcome

This test is conducted to assess leg strength and endurance. Participants are asked to stand in front of a sturdy chair and monitored by the remote research personnel during the test. The participants are instructed to sit in the middle of the chair. Place their hands on the opposite shoulder crossed, at the wrists. Keep their feet flat on the floor and back straight with arms against their chest. Then the following instruction "On "Go," rise to a full standing position, then sit back down again

Conditions Studied

Interventions

• BEHAVIORAL CogXergaming
• BEHAVIORAL Matter of Balance Training

Study Locations (1)