Information Processing Speed, Visuospatial Working Memory and Cognitive Failures in Middle-aged and Older Adults With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the most common age-related diseases, which has adverse effects on cognitive functions. This study aims to investigate the interaction effects of age and cognitive reserve on information processing speed, visuospatial working memory, and cognitive failures in middle-aged and older adults with COPD.

This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2023 on a 208 middle-aged and older patients with COPD who met the study criteria. Data were collected using the cognitive reserve index, cognitive failures questionnaire, the Corsi block-tapping test, and the symbol digit modalities test. The data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance in SPSS software, version 27.

Aging significantly affected information processing speed, visuospatial working memory, and cognitive failures in COPD patients. Cognitive reserve had a significant effect on information processing speed and cognitive failures in COPD patients, but had no effect on visuospatial working memory. The interaction effect of age and cognitive reserve was significant only on the cognitive failures; the interaction effect had no significant effect on the information processing speed and visuospatial working memory. 

Age and cognitive reserve may have differential effects on various cognitive domains in middle-aged and older adults with COPD.