BrightBrainer feasibility study in a medical adult day program

Purpose: To determine the feasibility of BrightBrainer training of elderly with dementia attending a Medical Adult Day Program. Method: BrightBrainer brain training games were played by 10 participants who sat in front of a projector screen and interacted through a bimanual game controller. The custom games targeted several cognitive domains such as focus, problem solving, short term memory, working memory, and language comprehension. Participants had a choice of what games to play among those available, and the difficulty adjusted automatically based on individual past performance. The system underwent feasibility trials spanning 16 sessions over 8 weeks. Participants were evaluated pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at 8 week follow up using standardized neuropsychological measures. Computerized measures of movement repetitions, task performance, session duration, games played and game scores were stored on a remote server. Results: Group analysis showed improvement in the cognitive domain of 1.4 points on Mini Mental Status Exam (MMSE) between pre-training and follow-up. One participant who started with MC1 ended with normal cognition (max scores on MMSE and Brief Interview of Mental Status - BIMS). Caregiver feedback noted participants' increased ability to follow one-step directions, to perform activities of daily living and increased desire to attend the Adult Day Program. Most participants enjoyed the computerized training.