Cognitive Remediation of Attention Deficits Following Acquired Brain Injury: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
NeuroRehabilitation
Virk, S., Williams, T., et al. (2015).
NeuroRehabilitation, 36(3), 367-377.
This systematic review and meta-analysis investigates the effects of cognitive remediation interventions (e.g., direct, hierarchical treatment, training in compensatory strategies) on attention in individuals with acquired brain injury (ABI) including stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI) or CNS-impacting malignancy.
University of Sydney (Australia)
The authors report that the small number of studies included, a result of scarcity of RCTs in the topic, was a limitation. There were significant differences between the acquired brain injury populations found for this study. Stroke patients "had a significantly higher weighted mean age (59.3 years)" (p. 372) over traumatic brain injury patients (35.0 years). Two studies involving individuals with CNS-impacting malignancy were found for the review; one of which was pediatric, and the other included only adult females.
Up to August 2014
Randomized controlled trials
12
<div>Cognitive rehabilitation targeting attention improved divided attention for individuals with cognitive dysfunction post stroke (<em>g</em> = 0.67), but not for individuals with cognitive dysfunction due to traumatic brain injury or CNS-impacting malignancy. Long-term effects and effects on other areas of attention (e.g., sustained, selective, alternating attention) were not significant for any acquired brain injury populations. Given the small number of studies, further research is warranted to examine specific rehabilitation approaches to remediate attention for this population.</div>
