Clinical Research Directory

Audiovisual Conditions During Eight Weeks of BOSU Training in Taekwondo Athletes

This nonrandomized three-group study described changes in taekwondo-specific electronic impact scores, selective attention and repeated-sprint performance over eight weeks of supplementary BOSU ball balance and proprioception training delivered under three different audiovisual conditions. Athletes were recruited from three taekwondo clubs in Malatya, Turkiye, and each club trained under one condition: high-tempo music (140-160 beats per minute) combined with projected elite competition footage (MV), low-tempo music alone (110-130 beats per minute; LTM), or no music and no video (CON). All three groups completed the same BOSU programme, three sessions per week for eight weeks (24 planned sessions of 40-45 minutes), in addition to their usual taekwondo training. Assessments were conducted at week 1, week 4 and week 8. Because allocation was not randomized and each condition was delivered predominantly within one club, audiovisual condition is confounded with club and the analyses are exploratory and descriptive rather than causal.

Following the Sound of Music

The proposed study will enroll healthy older adult participants to examine the effectiveness of music listening activities to promote hearing and cognition. Participants will be randomized into one of four experimental groups and can expect to participate for up to 21 hours of research distributed over 20 weeks.

Effects of Caffeine on Chess Performance and Cognitive Function in Professional Chess Players

This study will examine whether caffeine improves cognitive and competitive performance in professional chess players during tournament-style games. In a randomized double-blind crossover design, participants will complete two experimental sessions in which they consume either caffeinated coffee or decaffeinated coffee before playing a standardized chess match. Cognitive performance will be assessed using attention and reaction-time tests, including the Stroop Test, Trail Making Test, and Puzzle Rush task. Chess performance outcomes such as move accuracy, time management, and error rates will also be evaluated. The study aims to determine whether moderate caffeine intake enhances focus, alertness, and decision-making during prolonged competitive chess play.

Effects of Play Attention Neurofeedback on Attention and Weightlifting Performance in Adolescent Weightlifters

This study looks at whether a 24-week neurofeedback training program called Play Attention can help adolescent weightlifters pay better attention and lift better. Neurofeedback is a computer-based training method that shows people real-time information about their own brain activity, so they can learn to control it. In this study, adolescent weightlifters take part in the Play Attention program over 24 weeks. Researchers measure the athletes' attention skills and weightlifting performance before and after the program to see whether the training made a difference. The goal is to find out if this kind of brain-training program could be a useful tool to help young athletes focus better and perform better in their sport.

Result of tDCS in ASD Children With Comorbidities Like PANDAS, Rare Genetic Diseases or Autoimmune Disorders

Results of the application of 100 sessions of tDCS for 12 months in children between 6 and 11 years old with autism spectrum disorder with rare diseases, genetic problems or PANDAS

Xbox-Based Exergames Versus Structured Home-Based Cognitive Training for Attention and Executive Functions in Healthy Adults

Background: Exergames are increasingly used to support cognition in older adults; however, evidence comparing exergames with non-computerized cognitive training in healthy adults remains limited. Objective: This randomized controlled trial aimed to compare the effects of Xbox-based exergames and structured home-based cognitive training on attention and executive functions in healthy adults. Methods: Twenty healthy adults aged ≥50 years were randomly allocated to either an Xbox-based exergames group (n=10) or a structured home-based cognitive training group (n=10). Both groups received 12 sessions twice weekly. Before and after the intervention, participants were assessed using the Standardized Mini-Mental State Examination, d2 Test of Attention, Stroop Test, WMS-R Digit Span Test, Trail Making Test, and Benton Judgment of Line Orientation Test.

Experiment 3: Mixed vs Blocked; Dashboard Paradigm

The goal is to look for qualitative differences in visual search behavior when one search is performed many times in a row compared to when multiple search tasks are intermixed. Four search tasks are tested. The target is the same in every task but the types of distractors change from task to task. In this version, observers get some degree of choice in what they are searching.

Experiment 2: One Target in Many Situations

The goal is to look for qualitative differences in visual search behavior when one search is performed many times in a row compared to when multiple search tasks are intermixed. Four search tasks are tested. The target is the same in every task but the types of distractors change from task to task. In the Mixed condition, the four tasks are randomly changed from trial to trial. In the Blocked condition, each task is run as a block of 100 trials.

Mixed Vs Blocked Search: Four Unique Tasks

The goal is to look for qualitative differences in visual search behavior when one search is performed many times in a row compared to when multiple search tasks are intermixed. Four search tasks are tested. In the Mixed condition, the four tasks are randomly changed from trial to trial. In the Blocked condition, each task is run as a block of 100 trials.

Enhancing Attention and Processing Speed Through Home-based Music Rehabilitation Program After Stroke in Malaysia

Stroke often leads to significant cognitive impairment, impacting quality of life. While existing rehabilitation options exist, there's a need for innovative, accessible, and patient-centered solutions. Research suggests music can engage multiple brain networks associated with sensory and motor processes, cognition, and affective regulation, potentially enhancing cognitive functions like attention and processing speed as well. Home-based interventions have also demonstrated positive impacts on rehabilitation adherence and outcomes. Building on this foundation, this study proposes to develop and pilot test a home-based musical rehabilitation program to improve attention and processing speed in Malaysian stroke survivors.

Lion's Mane Dosing on Attention and Mood

The primary purpose of the research is to evaluate in healthy adults the time course effects of varying dosages of Lion's mane mushroom on attention and mood.

The Impact of One-Year Boxing Training on Attention in Adolescent Athletes

This study focuses on adolescent boxing athletes as the research subjects, employing the Attention Network Test to systematically investigate the effects of one-year boxing training on the attentional functions of adolescent athletes and their developmental patterns over time. Through a randomized controlled trial design, this study aims to reveal the association between boxing exercise and attention, thereby providing scientific and quantifiable empirical evidence for optimizing specialized training and protective measures for this population. Additionally, the Attention Network Test employed in this study is capable of sensitively capturing subtle changes in attentional networks, and may thus serve as a reference and provide insights for future research investigating the relationship between other combat sports and attention.

Effects of Physical Game Intervention on Memory, Attention, Gross Motor Skills and Social Adaptability in Children Aged 4-6 Years

This study aims to improve the memory, attention, gross motor skills and social adaptation ability of children aged 5 to 6 years. Taking physical games as the intervention method, it explores the effects of physical games on promoting young children's memory, attention, gross motor skills and social adaptation ability, and analyzes the approaches and mechanisms through which physical games enhance these abilities among children aged 4 to 6 years. The game scheme will be timely adjusted according to feedback obtained from a semester-long intervention. Finally, in collaboration with kindergarten teachers and the research team, a set of classroom-based physical game programs suitable for children aged 4 to 6 will be developed, so as to provide theoretical references and practical approaches for the improvement of the above abilities in preschool children of this age group. Smart physical game equipment is adopted and integrated into children's daily physical game classes to record and store children's sports data, establish individual archives of children's motor abilities, and realize real-time uploading, analysis and sharing of sports test results, enabling parents and teachers to keep abreast of children's physical exercise and motor development status in a timely manner.

Cereboost (American Ginseng Extract) and Brain Function

The study will assess the immediate, short-term benefits of a single dose of a supplement containing 200mg of Panax quinquefolius (American Ginseng) on cognition (brain function) in healthy young adults. To understand the effect this product may have, the participants will complete a series of questionnaires and cognitive tests (tests of memory and brain function) at set intervals across a 6-hour period. Blood samples will also be collected to assess the impact of the study product on the participants.

THE EFFECTS OF GAME-BASED EXERCISE PROGRAMS

Studies comparing aerobic exercise with virtual reality or video game technologies to traditional games and classical exercise have been conducted in healthy adolescents, but no studies comparing virtual reality and video game technologies have been found. Based on all this, we aimed to investigate the effect of virtual reality and video game-based exercise programs on physical fitness and attention levels in healthy adolescents. The study was planned as a quantitative experimental randomized controlled trial. Healthy individuals aged 10-18 years who meet the inclusion criteria will be evaluated during the dates of the study. Individuals will be divided into 3 groups: a classical physical activity group, a virtual reality group, and a video-based game group. Each program will be implemented for 20-30 minutes, three days a week for eight weeks. The Physical Activity Scale for Adolescents was used to evaluate the physical activity of the individuals, the Multidimensional Body-Self Relationship Scale was used to measure body image, and the Exercise Benefit/Barrier Scale was used to measure exercise perception. To measure attention, balance, and reaction time, the D2 Attention Test, Y-Balance Test, and Nelson's Hand Reaction Test will be administered, respectively. In the virtual reality and video-based game group, the games played by participants will be similar to the physical activities performed in the classic exercise group. One or more games incorporating these physical activities will be selected.

Virtual Reality Mirror Therapy With Focused Object-Directed Attention System

In this study, the investigators hypothesized that Virtual Reality Mirror Therapy with Focused Object-Directed Attention (VRMTFOA) would yield superior therapeutic effects compared to conventional Virtual Reality Mirror Therapy (VRMT) in individuals with unilateral stroke. The aim of this study is to compare the immediate effects of a single session of VRMT, VRMTFOA, and VRMTFOA with auditory feedback on upper extremity function and brain activity in stroke patients.

Music Effect on Concentration and Gait in Cerebral Palsy Children During Physical Therapy Sessions

* To investigate the effect of music therapy as an additional intervention with physical therapy on concentration in children with spastic CP. * To investigate the effect of music therapy as an additional intervention with physical therapy on gait parameters for the children with spastic CP.

Probing the Role of Feature Dimension Maps in Visual Cognition: Impact of Salience Level (Eye-tracking Follow-up Study)

How does one know what to look at in a scene? Imagine a "Where's Waldo" game - it's challenging to find Waldo because there are many 'salient' locations in the picture, each vying for one's attention. One can only attend to a small location on the picture at a given moment, so to find Waldo, one needs to direct their attention to different locations. One prominent theory about how one accomplishes this claims that important locations are identified based on distinct feature types (for example, motion or color), with locations most unique compared to the background most likely to be attended. An important component of this theory is that individual feature dimensions (again, color or motion) are computed within their own 'feature maps', which are thought to be implemented in specific brain regions. However, whether and how specific brain regions contribute to these feature maps remains unknown. The goal of this study is to determine how brain regions that respond strongly to different feature types (color and motion) and which encode spatial locations of visual stimuli extract 'feature dimension maps' based on stimulus properties, including feature contrast. The investigators hypothesize that feature-selective brain regions act as neural feature dimension maps, and thus encode representations of salient location(s) based on their preferred feature dimension. The investigators will collect eye-tracking data while participants view visual stimuli made salient based on different combinations of feature dimensions. From the eye-tracking data, the investigators will construct fixation heat maps on the feature dimensions for all levels of salience, allowing them to connect behavioral data to the latter fMRI dataset. Each participant will freely view the stimuli as they appear on the computer display. Across trials, the investigators will manipulate 1) the 'strength' of the salient locations based on how different the salient stimulus is compared to the background, 2) the number of salient locations, and 3) the feature value(s) used to make each location salient. Altogether, these manipulations will help the investigators fully understand these critical salience computations in the healthy human visual system.

Exploratory Randomized, Controlled, Dose-response Study on the Impact of Nicotine From Five Variants of a Nicotine Tablet (NICOTINE TABLET) on Attention

This study aims to provide initial insights into the impact of orally delivered nicotine on attentional performance in adult occasional users of nicotine pouches. Nicotine will be administered via a dissolvable tablet for approximately 10 minutes. The main objective of this exploratory study is to characterize the effect of nicotine on attentional performance, using metrics derived from Continuous Performance Test (CPT). Additionally, a second CPT assessment will be conducted two hours after the first administration to explore the potential sustained effects of nicotine on attention as an exploratory objective.

Intensive Music Therapy on Cognitive Function in Subacute Stroke Rehabilitation in Malaysia

The purpose of this study is to explore whether intensive music therapy can help improve cognitive functions like memory, attention, and decision-making skills in stroke patients who are undergoing rehabilitation. This is a feasibility study, meaning it's also designed to see how practical it is to include music therapy as part of stroke rehabilitation. The investigators want to learn how well patients can participate in and stick with this type of therapy, and whether it fits well with other treatments that stroke patients usually receive. By understanding this, the investigators can assess the resources, staff training, and planning needed for music therapy to be part of stroke recovery in the future. The study will also help the investigators estimate the effects of music therapy, which will be used to design a larger, more detailed study in the future.

Probing the Role of Feature Dimension Maps in Visual Cognition: Manipulations of Relevant Locations on Salience Processing? (Expt 3.1 Pilot)

How do we know what's important to look at in the environment? Sometimes, we need to look at objects because they are 'salient' (for example, bright flashing lights of a police car, or the stripes of a venomous animal), while other times, we need to ignore irrelevant salient locations and focus only on locations we know to be 'relevant'. These behaviors are often explained by the use of 'priority maps' which index the relative importance of different locations in the visual environment based on both their salience and relevance. In this research, we aim to understand how these factors interact when determining what's important to look at. Specifically, we are evaluating the extent to which the visual system considers locations that are known to be irrelevant when considering the salience of objects. We're testing the hypothesis that the visual system always computes maps of salient locations within 'feature maps', but that activity from these maps is not read out to guide behavior for task-irrelevant locations. We'll have people look at displays containing colored shapes and/or moving dots and report aspects of the visual stimulus (e.g., orientation of a line within a particular stimulus). We'll measure response times across conditions in which we manipulate the presence/absence of salient distracting stimuli and provide various kinds of cues about the potential relevance of different locations on the screen. The rationale is that by measuring changes in visual search behavior (and thus inferring computations performed on brain representations), we will determine how these aspects of simplified visual environments impact the brain's representation of important object locations. This will support future studies using brain imaging techniques aimed at identifying the neural mechanisms supporting the extraction of salient and relevant locations from visual scenes, which can inform future diagnosis/treatment of disorders which can impact our ability to perform visual search (e.g., schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease).

An Investigation of Attentional and Inhibitory Processes During Active Visual Search in Humans

The goal of this study is to investigate the finding that there are large individual differences in how participants move their eyes during active visual search. For example, some individuals tend to fixate, that is point their eyes steadily at a single location, for longer than other individuals before moving to another location. This experiment will use behavioral tasks to measure an individual's attentional and inhibitory functioning, and then see how each of these contributes to between-participant variability in eye movement behavior during visual search.

Neuropsychological Patterns of Suicide Ideators and Suicide Attempters

The present study consists of 3 projects in total and aims to investigate the (neuro-) psychological patterns from suicidal ideation to suicidal behavior as well as the effects and feasibility of ASSIP Home Treatment. The overall aim of project 1 is to determine (neuro-) psychological differences between suicide attempters, suicide ideators, a clinical control group, and healthy controls. Study participants in project 1 will participate in a one-time (neuro-) psychological assessment. Project 1 of this study is an observational cross-sectional study with four groups that will be conducted at the University Hospital of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy Bern (Switzerland): Patients with at least one suicide attempt in their past (SUAT), patients with suicidal ideation (SUID), patients from the same clinical cohort, without neither suicidal behavior or ideation (CLIN) and the healthy group (HLTH). The cohorts to be examined (SUAT \& SUID) will be compared to the two control groups (CLIN \& HLTH). Only people who have signed the informed consent and meet the eligibility criteria can participate in this study.

Oral Nutritional Supplementation in Children With Growth Concerns

Multi-center, single-blinded, randomized, controlled study consisting of two arms, to investigate the impact of an oral nutritional supplement in combination with dietary counseling on growth in children with growth concerns as compared to children who receive dietary counselling alone