Intra-Individual Variability in Cognitive Performance Can Befuddle the Study of Cognitive Impairments and Decline

Using group-aggregated results and snapshot assessments of cognitive performance may prove problematic if the assessed construct shows substantial and rapid variation over time. To illustrate the significance of this issue, we analyzed cognitive performance data of ten older adults undergoing daily computerized cognitive assessments (CogState Brief Battery) for 36–93 days. In all cases, the day-to-day intra-individual variability was substantial when compared with group-level, between-person variability. This indicates that the results of studies using single snapshot assessments of cognitive functioning should be interpreted with caution. Additionally, group-aggregated measures of cognitive performance may not directly extrapolate to an individual

Daily associations between affect and cognitive performance in older adults with depression and cognitive impairment: a series of seven single-subject studies in the Netherlands

BACKGROUND: Comorbidity between depression and cognitive impairment is common in older adults, increases the disease burden disproportionally, and leads to diagnostic uncertainty. Insight into individual daily associations between affect and cognitive performance may help in personalizing diagnosis and treatment decisions. Our objective was to get insight into the daily associations between affect and cognitive performance within individual older adults. METHODS: In this single-subject study seven older adults with both depression and cognitive impairment filled in electronic diaries daily for 62-93 consecutive days evaluating positive affect (PA), negative affect (NA), working memory (WM) and visual learning (VL). Time-series analyses using vector autoregressive modelling, Granger causality tests and cumulative orthogonalized impulse response function analyses were performed for each individual separately. RESULTS: In one patient higher NA was associated with better WM the next day. For another patient days with higher NA and lower PA were days with worse WM. For a third patient better VL was associated with lower NA and higher PA the next day. No associations were found for four patients. CONCLUSIONS: These results highlight heterogeneity in the daily associations between affect and cognitive performance and stress the relevance of single-subject studies. These studies may be an important step towards personalized diagnosis and treatment in old age psychiatry

Associations of the Stoptober smoking cessation program with information seeking for smoking cessation: A Google trends study

Introduction: The national smoking cessation program Stoptober was introduced in October 2012 in England and in October 2014 in the Netherlands. There is little evidence on the extent to which the Stoptober program has an impact on smoking-related outcomes at national levels. We aimed to measure the magnitude and timing of the associations of the Dutch Stoptober program with searching for smoking cessation on the internet. Methods: An interrupted time series analysis was used on Google search queries. Data were seasonally adjusted and analyzed using autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) modelling. To examine the magnitude and timing of the program, nine potential intervention periods around early October were analyzed simultaneously, with control for national tobacco control policies. Parallel analyses were made of Belgium as a control group. Results: The 2014–2016 Dutch Stoptober programs were associated with a significant increase in relative search volume (RSV) in the week the challenge starts (11%, 95% CI: 1–21), the next week (22%, 95% CI: 12–33) and the week afterward (17%, 95% CI: 8–27). A smaller, non-significant increase was observed in the two weeks before the challenge. No substantial increases were found in the Belgian control group. Conclusions: In the Netherlands, the Stoptober program was associated with a substantial short-term increase in information seeking for smoking cessation. This suggests that Stoptober may be able to affect smoking-related outcomes in national populations at large

Associations of the Stoptober smoking cessation program with information seeking for smoking cessation: A google trends study

Introduction: The national smoking cessation program Stoptober was introduced in October 2012 in England and in October 2014 in the Netherlands. There is little evidence on the extent to which the Stoptober program has an impact on smoking-related outcomes at national levels. We aimed to measure the magnitude and timing of the associations of the Dutch Stoptober program with searching for smoking cessation on the internet. Methods: An interrupted time series analysis was used on Google search queries. Data were seasonally adjusted and analyzed using autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) modelling. To examine the magnitude and timing of the program, nine potential intervention periods around early October were analyzed simultaneously, with control for national tobacco control policies. Parallel analyses were made of Belgium as a control group. Results: The 2014–2016 Dutch Stoptober programs were associated with a significant increase in relative search volume (RSV) in the week the challenge starts (11%, 95% CI: 1–21), the next week (22%, 95% CI: 12–33) and the week afterward (17%, 95% CI: 8–27). A smaller, non-significant increase was observed in the two weeks before the challenge. No substantial increases were found in the Belgian control group. Conclusions: In the Netherlands, the Stoptober program was associated with a substantial short-term increase in information seeking for smoking cessation. This suggests that Stoptober may be able to affect smoking-related outcomes in national populations at large

Intra-Individual Variability in Cognitive Performance Can Befuddle the Study of Cognitive Impairments and Decline

Using group-aggregated results and snapshot assessments of cognitive performance may prove problematic if the assessed construct shows substantial and rapid variation over time. To illustrate the significance of this issue, we analyzed cognitive performance data of ten older adults undergoing daily computerized cognitive assessments (CogState Brief Battery) for 36-93 days. In all cases, the day-to-day intra-individual variability was substantial when compared with group-level, between-person variability. This indicates that the results of studies using single snapshot assessments of cognitive functioning should be interpreted with caution. Additionally, group-aggregated measures of cognitive performance may not directly extrapolate to an individual

Associations of the Stoptober smoking cessation program with information seeking for smoking cessation: A Google trends study

INTRODUCTION: The national smoking cessation program Stoptober was introduced in October 2012 in England and in October 2014 in the Netherlands. There is little evidence on the extent to which the Stoptober program has an impact on smoking-related outcomes at national levels. We aimed to measure the magnitude and timing of the associations of the Dutch Stoptober program with searching for smoking cessation on the internet. METHODS: An interrupted time series analysis was used on Google search queries. Data were seasonally adjusted and analyzed using autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) modelling. To examine the magnitude and timing of the program, nine potential intervention periods around early October were analyzed simultaneously, with control for national tobacco control policies. Parallel analyses were made of Belgium as a control group. RESULTS: The 2014-2016 Dutch Stoptober programs were associated with a significant increase in relative search volume (RSV) in the week the challenge starts (11%, 95% CI: 1-21), the next week (22%, 95% CI: 12-33) and the week afterward (17%, 95% CI: 8-27). A smaller, non-significant increase was observed in the two weeks before the challenge. No substantial increases were found in the Belgian control group. CONCLUSIONS: In the Netherlands, the Stoptober program was associated with a substantial short-term increase in information seeking for smoking cessation. This suggests that Stoptober may be able to affect smoking-related outcomes in national populations at large