Musical Tests Used to Detect Mental Deterioration in Old Age

By Hamodia Staff

YERUSHALAYIM — Researchers at Tel Aviv University have developed a method that employs musical tests and a portable instrument for measuring brain activity to detect cognitive decline in old age.

The method, which is based on the measurement of 15 minutes of electrical activity in the brain while performing simple musical tasks, can be easily implemented by any staff member in any clinic, without requiring special training.

As part of the study, the researchers developed a groundbreaking method combining a portable device for the measurement and innovative analysis of electroencephalography (EEG), developed by Neurosteer, and a short musical test of about 12-15 minutes, developed by Neta Maimon.

During the test, the subject is connected to the portable EEG device by means of an adhesive band with only three electrodes attached to the forehead. The subject performs a series of musical-cognitive tasks according to audible instructions given automatically through earphones. The tasks include short melodies played by different instruments, with the subjects instructed to perform various tasks on them at varying levels of difficulty.

For example, pressing a button each time any melody is played or pressing it only when the violin plays. In addition, the test includes several minutes of musically guided meditation designed to bring the brain to a resting state, as this state is known to indicate cerebral functioning in various situations.

The study included an experiment at the Dorot-Netanya Geriatric Medical Center. Neta Maimon, from the TAU School of Psychological Sciences: “Anyone hospitalized at Dorot, or any other geriatric rehabilitation institution, undergoes a standard test called “mini-mental,” designed to evaluate their cognitive condition as a routine part of the intake process.

“The test is conducted by an occupational therapist specially trained for it, and includes a variety of tasks. For example, enumerating the days of the week or months of the year backwards. In this test, up to 30 points can be accrued. A high score indicates normal cognition.

“The experiment included the testing of 50 elderly people hospitalized at Dorot who scored 18-30 on the mini-mental test, indicating various levels of cognitive functioning. The participants performed the musical-cognitive tasks, administered automatically. The EEG device registered the electrical activity in the brain during the activity, with the results analyzed using machine learning technology. This allowed mathematical indices to be identified that were precisely correlated with the mini-mental test scores. In other words, we obtained new neuro-markers (brain markers) that may stand alone as indices of the subject’s cognitive status,” said Maimon.

The researchers conclude: “Today, millions of people around the world already suffer or are liable to suffer soon from cognitive decline and its dire consequences, and their number will only increase in the coming decades. Our method could pave the way towards efficient cognitive monitoring of the general population, and thus detect cognitive decline in its early stages, when treatment and prevention of severe decline are possible. It is therefore expected to improve the quality of life of millions around the world.”