ABSTRACT
Age-related decreases in action are caused by neuromuscular weakness and cognitive decline. Although physical interventions have been reported to have beneficial effects on cognitive function in older adults, whether cognitive training improves action-related function remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of combined cognitive training on intention-based and stimulus-based actions in older adults using event-related potentials (ERPs). A total of 26 healthy older adults (16 in the training group and 10 in the control group) participated in the study. The training group received 16 sessions of cognitive training, including eight sessions of executive function training and eight sessions of memory strategy training. Before and after training, both groups of participants underwent cognitive assessments and ERP recordings during both the acquisition and test phases with a motor cognitive paradigm. During the acquisition phase, subjects were asked to press one of two keys, either using a self-selected (intention-based) method or based on the preceding stimulus (stimulus-based). During the test phase, subjects were asked to respond to the pre-cues with either congruent or incongruent tasks. Using ERP indices-including readiness potential, P3 and contingent negative variation to identify motor preparation, stimulus processing and interference effect, respectively-we revealed the effects of training on both intention-based and stimulus-based actions. The correlations were also computed between the improved cognitive performance and the ERP amplitudes. It was shown that the improved executive function might extend substantial benefits to both actions, whereas associative memory may be specifically related to the bidirectional action-effect association of intention-based action, although the training effect of memory was absent during the insufficient training hours. In sum, the present study provided empirical evidence demonstrating that action could benefit from cognitive training. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: www.chictr.org.cn, identifier: ChiCTR-OON-16007793.
ABSTRACT
Objective To evaluate the burden of road traffic injury (RTI) from perspectives both on the health of population and on social economic status so as to provide scientific evidence for policy making. Methods The status of mortality and disability caused by traffic accident in Penglai county was estimated, based on data from death registration and a sampling survey from 2006 to 2007.Together with the disability weights gained from global burden of disease (GBD) , health burden (DALY) was measured with GBD formula. The economic burden of RTI was evaluated. Results Average loss of the health life years (HLY) related to RTI was 31 373.04 per year. 70.59 HLY were lost per 1000 persons. Loss among the males was higher than females. The loss of DALY among the age group 15-44 years ranked the first place (39 209.71 HLY) which accounted for 62.42% of the total DALY. 79.45% of the total DALY were caused by disability. In 2006 and 2007 ,the economic loss caused by RTI was as high as 2.19 billion RMB, which accounted for 4.89% of the total amount of GDP while the indirect economic costs (2.15 billion RMB) accounted for 98.45% of the total costs in Penglai city. The economic loss of the males was obviously higher than the females and the loss by the group aged 15-59 years old accounted for 97.65% of the total. Conclusion RTI had severely influenced the health of the residents in Penglai city and brought heavy burden to the individuals,families as well as the society.
