Zygouris Stelios, Ntovas Konstantinos, Giakoumis Dimitrios, Votis Konstantinos, Doumpoulakis Stefanos, Segkouli Sofia, Karagiannidis Charalampos, Tzovaras Dimitrios, Tsolaki Magda
3rd Department of Neurology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.
Network Aging Research, University of Heidelberg, Germany.
J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;56(2):619-627. doi: 10.3233/JAD-160518.
It has been demonstrated that virtual reality (VR) applications can be used for the detection of mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
The aim of this study is to provide a preliminary investigation on whether a VR cognitive training application can be used to detect MCI in persons using the application at home without the help of an examiner.
Two groups, one of healthy older adults (n = 6) and one of MCI patients (n = 6) were recruited from Thessaloniki day centers for cognitive disorders and provided with a tablet PC with custom software enabling the self-administration of the Virtual Super Market (VSM) cognitive training exercise. The average performance (from 20 administrations of the exercise) of the two groups was compared and was also correlated with performance in established neuropsychological tests.
Average performance in terms of duration to complete the given exercise differed significantly between healthy(μ = 247.41 s/ sd = 89.006) and MCI (μ= 454.52 s/ sd = 177.604) groups, yielding a correct classification rate of 91.8% with a sensitivity and specificity of 94% and 89% respectively for MCI detection. Average performance also correlated significantly with performance in Functional Cognitive Assessment Scale (FUCAS), Test of Everyday Attention (TEA), and Rey Osterrieth Complex Figure test (ROCFT).
The VR application exhibited very high accuracy in detecting MCI while all participants were able to operate the tablet and application on their own. Diagnostic accuracy was improved compared to a previous study using data from only one administration of the exercise. The results of the present study suggest that remote MCI detection through VR applications can be feasible.
已有研究表明虚拟现实（VR）应用可用于检测轻度认知障碍（MCI）。
本研究旨在初步调查一款VR认知训练应用能否用于在家中自行使用该应用的人群中检测MCI，而无需考官协助。
从塞萨洛尼基认知障碍日间护理中心招募了两组人员，一组为健康老年人（n = 6），另一组为MCI患者（n = 6），并为他们提供了装有定制软件的平板电脑，该软件可实现虚拟超市（VSM）认知训练练习的自我管理。比较了两组在该练习20次管理中的平均表现，并将其与既定神经心理学测试中的表现进行了关联。
健康组（μ = 247.41秒/标准差 = 89.006）和MCI组（μ = 454.52秒/标准差 = 177.604）完成给定练习的平均时长存在显著差异，MCI检测的正确分类率为91.8%，敏感性和特异性分别为94%和89%。平均表现也与功能认知评估量表（FUCAS）、日常注意力测试（TEA）和雷-奥斯特里思复杂图形测试（ROCFT）中的表现显著相关。
该VR应用在检测MCI方面表现出非常高的准确性，同时所有参与者都能够自行操作平板电脑和应用。与之前仅使用一次练习数据的研究相比诊断准确性有所提高。本研究结果表明通过VR应用进行远程MCI检测是可行的。
