Division of Advanced Prosthetic Dentistry, Tohoku University Graduate School of Dentistry, 4-1, Seiryo- machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-8575, Miyagi, Japan.
Department of Cognitive Health Science, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer (IDAC), Tohoku University, Seiryo-machi 4-1, Sendai, 980-8575, Japan.
BMC Oral Health. 2024 Oct 19;24(1):1250. doi: 10.1186/s12903-024-05044-5.
Cognitive function plays a crucial role in human life, and its maintenance and improvement are essential in both young and older adults. Since cognitive decline can be associated with oral function decline, preventing the decline in both cognitive and oral functions is an urgent social issue. Several training methods to improve each function have been proposed. Previous studies have indicated that greater brain activity during training is associated with increased benefits for cognitive function. Although adding cognitive function elements to oral function training may promote the activation of brain activity during oral function training, the effects have not been validated. The main purpose of this study is to develop a novel training program that combines oral function training with cognitive training, which is expected to activate key brain regions involved in oral and cognitive functions, such as the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and right medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC).
Four types of training programs combining oral and cognitive training: PaTaKaRa × calculation, lip exercise × N-back, tongue exercise × inhibition, and tongue exercise × memory, were developed. Each program had seven levels of difficulty [level 0 (no cognitive load) and level 6 (maximum difficulty)]. Twelve healthy young adults participated in the study and were instructed to perform all four programs. Brain activity in the left DLPFC and right mPFC were measured during each training session using two-channel near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS).
No significant brain activity was observed during training at level 0. Brain activity in the left DLPFC was significantly increased at levels 1 and 2 and in the left DLPFC and right mPFC at level 6 during PaTaKaRa × calculation training. Brain activity in the left DLPFC was significantly increased at level 6 during tongue exercise × inhibition training. Brain activity in the left DLPFC and right mPFC was significantly increased at level 6 during lip exercise × N-back training.
Oral function training did not significantly increase brain activity; nevertheless, oral function with cognitive training stimulated brain activity in the prefrontal cortex.
UMIN-CTR. ID: UMIN000039678. date: 06/03/2020.
认知功能在人类生活中起着至关重要的作用，保持和提高认知功能对年轻人和老年人都至关重要。由于认知能力下降可能与口腔功能下降有关，因此预防认知和口腔功能的下降是一个紧迫的社会问题。已经提出了几种改善每种功能的训练方法。先前的研究表明，训练过程中大脑活动的增加与认知功能的益处增加有关。虽然在口腔功能训练中加入认知功能元素可能会促进口腔功能训练过程中大脑活动的激活，但效果尚未得到验证。本研究的主要目的是开发一种新的训练程序，将口腔功能训练与认知训练相结合，预计将激活与口腔和认知功能相关的关键大脑区域，如左背外侧前额叶皮层（DLPFC）和右内侧前额叶皮层（mPFC）。
开发了四种结合口腔和认知训练的训练程序：PaTaKaRa×计算、唇练习×N-回、舌练习×抑制和舌练习×记忆。每个程序都有七个难度级别[级别 0（无认知负荷）和级别 6（最大难度）]。12 名健康的年轻成年人参加了这项研究，并被指示完成所有四个程序。在每次训练过程中，使用双通道近红外光谱（NIRS）测量左 DLPFC 和右 mPFC 的大脑活动。
在 0 级训练时没有观察到明显的大脑活动。在 PaTaKaRa×计算训练中，左 DLPFC 的大脑活动在 1 级和 2 级以及左 DLPFC 和右 mPFC 的 6 级时显著增加。在舌练习×抑制训练中，左 DLPFC 的大脑活动在 6 级时显著增加。在唇练习×N-回训练中，左 DLPFC 和右 mPFC 的大脑活动在 6 级时显著增加。
口腔功能训练并未显著增加大脑活动；然而，口腔功能与认知训练刺激了前额叶皮层的大脑活动。
UMIN-CTR。ID：UMIN000039678。日期：2020 年 6 月 3 日。
