Calligraphy Writing for Cognitive and Emotional Enhancement Among Older MCI People

NCT ID: NCT02755792

Last Updated: 2016-04-29

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

99 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2012-07-31

Study Completion Date

2016-04-30

Brief Summary

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This study is aimed to investigate the efficacy of an 12-week Chinese calligraphy training program for enhancing cognitive and emotional functions of older adults with mild cognitive impairment. Participants are tested with several cognitive tests and electroencephalography (EEG), psycho-physical parameters and brain activities are recorded. Results are compared at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and 6-month post-intervention to provide evidence of benefits of Chinese calligraphy practice.

Detailed Description

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Participants are older adults with mild cognitive impairment, who will be recruited from several community elderly centers in Hong Kong according to selective criteria. The participants are randomly assigned to an experimental or a control group. The experimental group is invited to participate in 16 sessions of structured Chinese calligraphy program over 12 weeks. Each session lasts for 1.5 hours. The control group is invited to participate in an iPad learning program with navigating the Internet. The iPad program is also consisted of 16 sessions of 1.5 hours each over 8 weeks. Cognitive tests and physiological measures are conducted immediately before and after intervention and at 6-month post-intervention follow-up. Statistical analysis are performed to investigate the significant differences and interactions among the three time points. The association of cognitive performance and emotional calmness is also investigated.

Selected participants are invited to take part in a EEG session while doing some computer tasks related to Chinese calligraphy. EEG results of are used to explore neural activities associated with visuospatial working memory and to provide evidence for neural changes at functional level as a result of Chinese calligraphy training and practice.

Conditions

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Mild Cognitive Impairment

Keywords

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Mild Cognitive Impairment Cognitive training Calligraphy Emotional calmness Working memory

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

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Calligraphy Training

This group receives a Chinese calligraphy training program of 16 sessions over 8 weeks in a class of 8-12 participants. Each session is 1.5 hours.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Calligraphy Training

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

iPad Training

This group receives an iPad training program of 16 sessions over 8 weeks in a class of 8-12 participants. Each session is 1.5 hours.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

iPad Training

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Interventions

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Calligraphy Training

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

iPad Training

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Meeting Petersen's criteria for mild cognitive impairment
* Being able to read simple Chinese characters
* Community-dwelling
* Clinical Dementia Rating score of 0.5
* No substantial prior experience of calligraphy writing
* Willing to write using a brush and willing to participate

Exclusion Criteria

* Presence of musculoskeletal problems preventing participants from writing
* Known chronic cardiovascular (e.g. systolic BP \> 140mmHg) or pulmonary conditions requiring long-term medication
* Presence of severe mental disorder such as psychosis or depression.
Minimum Eligible Age

60 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Prof. Chetwyn Chan

Associate Vice President (Learning and Teaching) and Chair Professor

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Chetwyn CH Chan, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Locations

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The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Hong Kong, , Hong Kong

Site Status

Countries

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Hong Kong

References

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Gauthier S, Reisberg B, Zaudig M, Petersen RC, Ritchie K, Broich K, Belleville S, Brodaty H, Bennett D, Chertkow H, Cummings JL, de Leon M, Feldman H, Ganguli M, Hampel H, Scheltens P, Tierney MC, Whitehouse P, Winblad B; International Psychogeriatric Association Expert Conference on mild cognitive impairment. Mild cognitive impairment. Lancet. 2006 Apr 15;367(9518):1262-70. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(06)68542-5.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 16631882 (View on PubMed)

Belleville S, Chertkow H, Gauthier S. Working memory and control of attention in persons with Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment. Neuropsychology. 2007 Jul;21(4):458-69. doi: 10.1037/0894-4105.21.4.458.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 17605579 (View on PubMed)

Boyle PA, Malloy PF, Salloway S, Cahn-Weiner DA, Cohen R, Cummings JL. Executive dysfunction and apathy predict functional impairment in Alzheimer disease. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2003 Mar-Apr;11(2):214-21.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 12611751 (View on PubMed)

Chan WC, Lam LC, Tam CW, Lui VW, Chan SS, Chan WM, Chiu HF. Prevalence of neuropsychiatric symptoms in chinese older persons with mild cognitive impairment-a population-based study. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2010 Oct;18(10):948-54. doi: 10.1097/JGP.0b013e3181d69467.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 20808089 (View on PubMed)

Wilson RS, Scherr PA, Schneider JA, Tang Y, Bennett DA. Relation of cognitive activity to risk of developing Alzheimer disease. Neurology. 2007 Nov 13;69(20):1911-20. doi: 10.1212/01.wnl.0000271087.67782.cb. Epub 2007 Jun 27.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 17596582 (View on PubMed)

Belleville S, Gilbert B, Fontaine F, Gagnon L, Menard E, Gauthier S. Improvement of episodic memory in persons with mild cognitive impairment and healthy older adults: evidence from a cognitive intervention program. Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2006;22(5-6):486-99. doi: 10.1159/000096316. Epub 2006 Oct 16.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 17050952 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

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Calligraphy-MCI

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id