Michal Pieniak, Marta Rokosz, Paulina Nawrocka, Aleksandra Reichert, Barbara Zyzelewicz, Mehmet K Mahmut, Anna Oleszkiewicz
{"title":"Null cross-modal effects of olfactory training on visual, auditory or olfactory working memory in 6- to 9-year-old children.","authors":"Michal Pieniak, Marta Rokosz, Paulina Nawrocka, Aleksandra Reichert, Barbara Zyzelewicz, Mehmet K Mahmut, Anna Oleszkiewicz","doi":"10.1080/09602011.2024.2343484","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Systematic exposure to odours (olfactory training, OT) is a method of smell loss treatment. Due to olfactory system projections to prefrontal brain areas, OT has been hypothesized to enhance cognitive functions, but its effects have been studied predominantly in adults. This study tested OT effects on working memory (WM), i.e., the ability to store and manipulate information for a short time, in healthy children aged 6-9 years. We expected OT to improve olfactory WM and establish cross-modal transfer to visual and auditory WM. Participants performed 12 weeks of bi-daily OT with either 4 odours (lemon, eucalyptus, rose, cloves; OT group) or odourless propylene glycol (placebo group). Pre- and post-training, participants' WM was measured utilizing odours (olfactory WM) or pictures (visual WM) and a word-span task (auditory WM). 84 children (40 girls) completed the study. The analyses revealed no changes in the WM performance following OT. The olfactory WM task was the most difficult for children, highlighting the need to include olfactory-related tasks in educational programmes to improve children's odour knowledge and memory, just as they learn about sounds and pictures. Further neuroimaging research is needed to fully understand the impact of OT on cognitive functions in children.</p>","PeriodicalId":54729,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychological Rehabilitation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.7000,"publicationDate":"2024-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Neuropsychological Rehabilitation","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09602011.2024.2343484","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"NEUROSCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Systematic exposure to odours (olfactory training, OT) is a method of smell loss treatment. Due to olfactory system projections to prefrontal brain areas, OT has been hypothesized to enhance cognitive functions, but its effects have been studied predominantly in adults. This study tested OT effects on working memory (WM), i.e., the ability to store and manipulate information for a short time, in healthy children aged 6-9 years. We expected OT to improve olfactory WM and establish cross-modal transfer to visual and auditory WM. Participants performed 12 weeks of bi-daily OT with either 4 odours (lemon, eucalyptus, rose, cloves; OT group) or odourless propylene glycol (placebo group). Pre- and post-training, participants' WM was measured utilizing odours (olfactory WM) or pictures (visual WM) and a word-span task (auditory WM). 84 children (40 girls) completed the study. The analyses revealed no changes in the WM performance following OT. The olfactory WM task was the most difficult for children, highlighting the need to include olfactory-related tasks in educational programmes to improve children's odour knowledge and memory, just as they learn about sounds and pictures. Further neuroimaging research is needed to fully understand the impact of OT on cognitive functions in children.
期刊介绍:
Neuropsychological Rehabilitation publishes human experimental and clinical research related to rehabilitation, recovery of function, and brain plasticity. The journal is aimed at clinicians who wish to inform their practice in the light of the latest scientific research; at researchers in neurorehabilitation; and finally at researchers in cognitive neuroscience and related fields interested in the mechanisms of recovery and rehabilitation. Papers on neuropsychological assessment will be considered, and special topic reviews (2500-5000 words) addressing specific key questions in rehabilitation, recovery and brain plasticity will also be welcomed. The latter will enter a fast-track refereeing process.