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Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Abstract

Background: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia. This randomized control trial investigated the effects of the newly developed computer brain gym (BG) system on the cognitive function and mental health of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Materials and Methods: Twenty-three participants with AD who were exhibiting mild to moderate cognitive impairment were recruited and randomly divided into two groups. Group 1 received computer BG training, whereas Group 2 received conventional occupational therapy (OT). The patients underwent treatment for 12 weeks, with treatment sessions occurring twice per week for 45 minutes per session; additionally, they received assessments at pretest and posttest the treatment. Results: No statistically significant differences were evident in the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) or Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) after the intervention. After cognitive training, the global rating scale of the BEHAVE-AD score improved in the BG group (from 1.55±1.04 to 0.82±0.75, p=0.046). When regarding the aggressiveness score after training, the difference between the BG group and the OT group reached statistically significance (BG group:-0.82±1.94, OT group:1.00±1.86,p=0.030). Conclusion: BG can improve mental health, preserve cognitive function, and represents a suitable rehabilitation program for patients with mild to moderate AD. Therefore, exergame has the potential to serve as an alternative to OT as a rehabilitation program for patients with AD.

Language

English

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