Information processing speed, visuospatial working memory and cognitive
failures in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients: The
interaction effects of age and cognitive reserve
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that aging can contribute to cognitive
decline in patients with COPD, whereas cognitive reserve (CR) can be a
protective factor against cognitive decline following brain pathology.
However, the effects of CR and the interaction between age and CR on
cognitive functions in patients with COPD have not been studied. We
investigated the effects of age as a risk factor and CR as a protective
factor on information processing speed, visuospatial working memory, and
cognitive failures in 104 middle-aged (Mage = 58.75 years, SDage = 3.51)
and 104 elderly (Mage = 69.43 years, SDage = 3.12) patients with COPD.
In addition, this study aimed to explore the interaction effect of age
and CR on information processing speed, visuospatial working memory, and
cognitive failures in middle-aged and elderly patients with COPD. The
findings of the present study showed that (1) age significantly affects
information processing speed, visuospatial working memory, and cognitive
failures in patients with COPD. (2) CR has a significant effect on
information processing speed and cognitive failures in COPD patients,
but we did not observe the effect of CR on visuospatial working memory
in COPD patients. It was also found that (3) the interaction effect of
age and CR was only observed on cognitive failures, while the
interaction of age and CR had no significant effect on information
processing speed and visuospatial working memory in COPD patients. This
study brings to light the differential effects of age and CR on the
cognitive domains in COPD patients.