Eye Movement Parameters and Cognitive Functions in Older Adults

N/ANot Yet RecruitingNCT07358598

National Sun Yat-sen University210 enrolled

Overview

Dementia most commonly occurs in elderly individuals, but currently there is still a lack of objective measurement methods that can detect cognitive impairment in older adults at an early stage. Eye movement is considered a clinical indicator with potential for screening mild cognitive dysfunction, and eye movement signals can be extracted to objectively evaluate cognition. Eye tracking has been used mostly to evaluate patients with neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease. However, less attention has been paid to the relationship between eye movement and cognitive function in elderly individuals, as well as the association between eye movement data and abnormal cognitive subdomains. This cross-sectional study will recruit 0204 elderly individuals over the age of 65, divided into three groups (healthy group/mild cognitive impairment group/dementia group) according to the purpose of this study. Participants who have not been diagnosed with neurological diseases (such as Parkinson's disease or stroke), or have mental illness or visual impairments will be excluded. This study hopes to provide empirical data on eye movement signals and cognitive function in healthy older individuals, as well as to serve as a preliminary study for future development of eye activity stimulation to improve cognitive function in older adults.

Study Type

OBSERVATIONAL

Enrollment

210

Conditions

Cognitive Dysfunction

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 65 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: \- Participants are aged 65 years or older and have completed a comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) in the outpatient clinic. Exclusion Criteria: * Participants are under 65 years of age or those who ar are unable to comply with study procedures.

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Eye-tracking measurement

Eye movement behavior will be assessed as an objective measure of cognitive control in older adults. Eye-tracking data will be collected using the J7EF Gaze Smart Glasses (Jorjin Technologies), a non-invasive wearable eye-tracking system with a sampling frequency of 30 Hz. Participants will perform standardized visual tasks while eye movement behavior is recorded. Outcome measures will include task-related eye movement patterns, such as gaze behavior and saccadic performance, which reflect attentional control and higher-order cognitive processing. Alterations in these eye movement parameters have been associated with cognitive impairment. Eye movement measures will be used to characterize differences in cognitive function across participant groups.

Time frame: A single assessment is conducted at one study visit (cross-sectional design).

Secondary Outcomes

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)

The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is a widely used cognitive screening tool originally developed by Folstein and McHugh in 1975 (Folstein et al., 1975). It consists of 30 items assessing six domains of cognitive function: orientation, attention, memory, language, verbal comprehension, praxis, and constructional ability. Higher scores indicate better cognitive function. A total score between 24 and 30 suggests intact cognitive function; scores between 18 and 23 are indicative of mild cognitive impairment; and scores from 0 to 17 reflect moderate to severe cognitive impairment. In the present study, the MMSE is used to classify adults aged 65 years and older into cognitive status groups, including a cognitively healthy group, a mild cognitive impairment (MCI) group, and a dementia group, based on established score thresholds.