Centrum Neuropsychologii "Neurona" w Wołowie.
Uniwersytet Medyczny we Wrocławiu, Katedra Geriatrii.
Psychiatr Pol. 2022 Apr 30;56(2):405-416. doi: 10.12740/PP/OnlineFirst/125573.
According to some theoretical interpretations of the olfactory training effects, the training may indirectly exert positive influence on cognitive functioning in patients with Alzheimer's dementia. The mechanism of action is stimulation of cerebral blood flow in areas of brain which are shared by olfactory and memory processes. The aim of this article is to verify a hypothesis that the olfactory training improves memory and attention functions in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment.
Participants with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (N = 35; 17 males and 18 females) constituted their own control group. During the first 12 weeks from the baseline evaluation no therapeutic actions were performed. The subjects underwent control neuropsychological assessment and entered in the second stage of the study. In that stage they were subjected to a daily olfactory training, which included two a few-minute-long sessions per day, which were performed for the following 3 months. Subject's memory functioning was measured at three time points: at the baseline, after 3 months and after 6 months (from the baseline). Cross-over assignment was used as the intervention method -which means that the participants constituted their own control group. The scales employed in the study to measure memory and attention were: ACE-III, CVLT, and MMSE.
Statistically significant improvement in memory functions measured with the CVLT, MMSE, ACE-III Memory, and ACE-III Total Score was obtained. It is considered an artefact related to practice effects, not true training results. Moreover, trend suggesting improvement on the ACE-III Attention was noted as well.
The authors review theoretical implications of the conducted study. Methodological challenges pertaining to the study design are discussed and future research directions are proposed.
根据嗅觉训练效果的一些理论解释，训练可能会间接对阿尔茨海默病痴呆患者的认知功能产生积极影响。其作用机制是刺激嗅觉和记忆过程共享的大脑区域的血流。本文的目的是验证嗅觉训练是否能改善遗忘型轻度认知障碍患者的记忆和注意力功能。
遗忘型轻度认知障碍患者（N=35；男性 17 名，女性 18 名）组成自己的对照组。在基线评估后的前 12 周内，不进行任何治疗措施。受试者接受了控制神经心理学评估，并进入了研究的第二阶段。在第二阶段，他们每天接受嗅觉训练，包括每天两次几分钟的训练，持续 3 个月。在三个时间点测量受试者的记忆功能：基线时、3 个月后和 6 个月后（从基线开始）。交叉分配作为干预方法，即参与者组成自己的对照组。用于测量记忆和注意力的量表包括 ACE-III、CVLT 和 MMSE。
在 CVLT、MMSE、ACE-III 记忆和 ACE-III 总分方面，记忆功能的测量结果显示出统计学上的显著改善。这被认为是与练习效应相关的人为因素，而不是真正的训练结果。此外，注意的 ACE-III 也显示出改善的趋势。
作者回顾了所进行研究的理论意义。讨论了研究设计中存在的方法学挑战，并提出了未来的研究方向。
