ArticlePloS one2020
Functional magnetic resonance imaging of the trail-making test in older adults.
Article in PloS one, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 29 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effect of transcranial direct current stimulation with cognitive training on executive functions in healthy older adults: a secondary analysis from the ACT trial.GeroScience · 2025Trial
- Improved processing speed and decreased functional connectivity in individuals with chronic stroke after paired exercise and motor training.Scientific reports · 2023Trial
- Association Between the Japanese Version of Montreal Cognitive Assessment Tasks and Driving as the Primary Mode of Transport Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults.Canadian geriatrics journal : CGJ · 2026Article
- Autistic Trait Level and Reaction Time in Older Adults: The Influence of Sex and Task upon Study Outcome.Autism in adulthood · 2026Article
- Executive Function Deficits in Genetic Frontotemporal Dementia: Results From the GENFI Study.Neurology. Genetics · 2025Article
- Circulating Biomarkers to Predict Post-Operative Cognitive Decline in Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting.Cellular and molecular neurobiology · 2025Article
- Cortical and subcortical morphometric changes and their relation to cognitive impairment in isolated REM sleep behavior disorder.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2024Article
- Neuronal microstructural changes in the human brain are associated with neurocognitive aging.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- Classification of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's Disease Using Manual Motor Measures.Neuro-degenerative diseases · 2024Article
- Cognitive outcomes in patients treated with neuromuscular electrical stimulation after coronary artery bypass grafting.Frontiers in neurology · 2023Article
- Association of β-Amyloid Accumulation With Executive Function in Adults With Unimpaired Cognition.Neurology · 2022Article
- Cingulo-opercular and frontoparietal control network connectivity and executive functioning in older adults.GeroScience · 2022Article
- A Link between Handgrip Strength and Executive Functioning: A Cross-Sectional Study in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Healthy Controls.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Aberrant brain functional networks in type 2 diabetes mellitus: A graph theoretical and support-vector machine approach.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2022Article
- Article
- Tablet Technology for Writing and Drawing during Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging: A Review.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
- Trail Making Test Performance Using a Touch-Sensitive Tablet: Behavioral Kinematics and Electroencephalography.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2021Article
- Dysfunctional Interaction Between the Dorsal Attention Network and the Default Mode Network in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The trail-making test (TMT) is a popular neuropsychological test, which is used extensively to measure cognitive impairment associated with neurodegenerative disorders in older adults. Behavioural performance on the TMT has been investigated in older populations, but there is limited research on task-related brain activity in older adults. The current study administered a naturalistic version of the TMT to a healthy older-aged population in an MRI environment using a novel, MRI-compatible tablet. Functional MRI was conducted during task completion, allowing characterization of the brain activity associated with the TMT. Performance on the TMT was evaluated using number of errors and seconds per completion of each link. Results are reported for 36 cognitively healthy older adults between the ages of 52 and 85. Task-related activation was observed in extensive regions of the bilateral frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital lobes as well as key motor areas. Increased age was associated with reduced brain activity and worse task performance. Specifically, older age was correlated with decreased task-related activity in the bilateral occipital, temporal and parietal lobes. These results suggest that healthy older aging significantly affects brain function during the TMT, which consequently may result in performance decrements. The current study reveals the brain activation patterns underlying TMT performance in a healthy older aging population, which functions as an important, clinically-relevant control to compare to pathological aging in future investigations.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.