View clinical trials related to Executive Function.
Filter by:We plan to examine whether child and parental cognitive/executive function predict body composition outcomes and adherence to a 6-month protocol of Family-Based Behavioral Treatment (FBT), for pediatric obesity. Our objectives are to: (1) examine the effects of parent and child complex cognitive functions on treatment outcomes and adherence in a 6-month FBT program for obesity in a diverse group of children aged 8-12 (total of 16 child-parent pairs), and (2) examine the strength of the relationship between parent and child cognitive function. We hypothesize that children with poorer executive function, and those who have parents with poorer executive function, will have poorer body composition and adherence outcomes.
Each year, approximately 1 child in every 100 is born with Congenital Heart Disease (CHD), making it the most common birth defect. With recent medical advances, more children with CHD survive early open-heart surgery, so that there are now 2 to 3 million adult survivors with CHD. These survivors face challenges in terms of their cognitive and behavioral development. For many, the limitations affect their academic achievement, social adaption and, ultimately, their quality of life. Among the most disabling limitations are those that pertain to the ability to maintain attention, plan and organize activities, regulate emotions, and develop problem-solving strategies. Collectively, these are referred to as executive functions (EF) because they are higher-order abilities that enable one to coordinate complex behaviors. Additionally, impaired EF also underlie mental health disorders. In spite of the abundance of evidence that children with CHD struggle with EF, there is little to offer them in the way of evidence-based interventions to prevent or mitigate these problems. The investigators propose to conduct the first randomized trial to evaluate the efficacy of an intervention, the Cogmed Working Memory Program, in improving the neurodevelopment outcomes of children with critical CHD after infant open-heart surgery. Children who meet eligibility criteria and who agree to participate will be randomly assigned to an intervention or control group. Children in the intervention group will complete 25 35-40 minute sessions of Cogmed training, spread over for 5 weeks. This Program is a set of home-based, child-friendly, computerized activities. The control group will receive the standard of care for children with CHD. Children's scores on EF and related neurodevelopmental tests will be evaluated before the intervention group completes Cogmed training, at the conclusion of their training, and 3 months later. The latter assessment will indicate whether any gains in EF skills of the children in the intervention group are sustained after training. Parents and teachers will also complete questionnaires about children's EF, attention, and social behaviors to determine whether training affects behaviors of the intervention group at home and in school. The investigators will also identify the medical and surgical characteristics of children who benefit most from Cogmed training. This information will be helpful in targeting the intervention most efficiently in the future.
The purpose of this study is to determine whether a new treatment, Unstuck and On Target (UOT), works better, worse, or the same as the best treatment that is available now, Contingency Behavioral Management (CBM), for low income children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Background: environmental influences in the first years of life have a great impact on adulthood. Adequate environmental stimulation in the first years of life positively influence cognitive, emotional and neurological development. Studies show that high quality education for 3 to 6 years old children are cost-effective for diverse outcomes, such as socioemotional and cognitive development, as well as school performance. However, it is not clear why specific types of interventions are most effective on school readiness, an important precursor of literacy status and later life outcomes. Objectives: adapt to the Brazilian context two well-known intervention programs: (1) executive functions training developed by Diamond, and (2) oral language skills based on the Nuffield Programme developed by Snowling and colleagues. Methods: a randomized controlled trial involving 720 children (4 to 5 years old) allocated to three groups: (1) adapted school curriculum focusing on executive functions training, (2) adapted school curriculum focusing on oral language skills training, and (3) regular school curriculum.
Executive dysfunction can profoundly impact all dimensions of a child's development. Impairments in executive function are a central component of the neurodevelopmental phenotype associated with CHD, and manifest as behavioral dysregulation and problems with attention, working memory, and organization/planning abilities. Identifying effective treatment strategies is vital for providing optimal care for these patients. The Cogmed executive function intervention, an evidence-based computerized neurocognitive program, improves outcomes in several pediatric populations. The investigators propose to conduct a pilot study to evaluate its efficacy in reducing morbidities in patients with CHD. This is a single center, single blinded 2-arm randomized controlled trial to test the immediate post-treatment and 3-month follow-up efficacy of Cogmed intervention versus standard of care in adolescents with CHD.
A promising form of enhancing brain function non-invasively involves stimulating the brain using weak magnetic or electric currents. This method is becoming increasingly popular in both clinical and commercial circles; a number of portable, at-home devices are available on the commercial market for personal use. In this study, the investigators aim to determine factors associated with the enhancement of cognitive and motor learning following transcranial direct-current stimulation in healthy young adults. Understanding how participants respond to brain stimulation is critical to maximizing the effectiveness of stimulation and determining its potential as a performance-enhancing aid for mental tasks. Future developments of this study may also inform the capacity of brain stimulation to act as non-drug alternative to treatment for cognitive decline.
Purpose: To examine the effect of the omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio on age-related changes in executive functions in children and older adults. Participants: Eighty-four typically-developing 7-to 12-year-old children. Procedure (methods): Participants and a caregiver will participate in 4 sessions. Three sessions will consist of the screening. These sessions will be telephone calls to collect 24-hour diet information that will be used to determine whether they are eligible for the fourth session. Approximately 120 participants will be screened to find 84 participants who are eligible for the fourth session, in which participants will complete a series of tests on the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) - a touch-screen device that provides computerized versions of standardized cognitive tests. They will also complete a maze task in which they figure out a path through the maze by walking on the correct squares. Brain activity will be recorded using a portable near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) system.
Cordyceps Sinensis (CS) and Lingzhi extracts have been used in Chinese Medicine for many years for treatment of a variety of conditions. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of oral ingestion of CS and Lingzhi extracts of a period of 28 days on cardiopulmonary fitness and cognitive functioning in young, healthy physical education students.
Studies have shown that an acute bout of aerobic exercise positively effects cognition, mainly executive functioning; however the effect is not observed among all people and it is not clear whether only aerobic exercise can produce this effect or possibly also resistant exercise. The main purpose of our study is to examine whether genetic variation is a moderator of this effect and whether resistant exercise is comparable to aerobic exercise in improving cognition following a single bout of exercise.
The purpose of this study is to determine whether modafinil is effective in the improvement of mnesic performance and executive functions of university students from high academic performance.