Episodic memory improvement in community-dwelling women following a remote language-based stimulation program.

Abstract

The increasing aging of the world's population has motivated studies leading to initiatives like developing online and face-to-face cognitive stimulation programs targeting typical and atypical aging populations. The decline in episodic memory (EM) capacity is one of the hallmarks of cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease.

Objective: The study analyzes the effect of a telepractice, composed exclusively of language activities, on five tasks of EM by comparing their scores in pre- and post-intervention assessments.

Methods: Forty-nine (49) women aged 57-83 years (mean 68.1), with 6-22 (mean 15.1) years of formal education, engaged in a 15-session online intervention program delivered daily during the COVID-19 pandemic. A pre- and post-intervention cognitive assessment was administered, including five tasks assessing EM: two subtests of the verbal learning task of the Battery for the Assessment of Language in Aging (BALE) (free recall and with cues), the delayed recall subtest of the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-Revised (ACE-R), the recall of the Brief Cognitive Screening Battery (BBRC) and the Face and Name Recall Test.

Results: EM scores were consistently higher in the post-intervention assessments, with a significant improvement observed in four of the five EM tasks.

Conclusion: The results bring implications for further research about telepractice, suggesting that typical older adults can benefit from language-based cognitive stimulation to prevent, reduce, or rehabilitate EM deficits.