P3‐298: PROSODIC FEATURES AS POTENTIAL MARKERS OF LINGUISTIC AND COGNITIVE DETERIORATION IN MILD COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT
Kristina Lundholm Fors, Kathleen Fraser, Charalambos K. Themistocleous, Dimitrios Kokkinakis · Alzheimer s & Dementia · 2018
Language impairment in general, and specifically semantic impairment, is an early symptom of Alzheimer's disease (AD), and is also present in mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a prodromal stage of AD (Taler & Phillips, 2008). MCI is further characterized by a decrease in perceptual speed (Dixon et al., 2007) and executive functioning (Taler & Phillips, 2008). In this study, we compare prosodic features in persons with MCI and healthy controls (HC), and we discuss the impact of language-specific impairments and general cognitive deterioration on prosody in MCI. Our material consists of audio recordings of spontaneous and read Swedish speech by 31 speakers with MCI and 36 HC. The groups do not differ significantly with regards to age. The material has been manually transcribed, and we have extracted prosodic features such as pauses, hesitations markers (e.g. “uh” and “um”) and articulation rate. We have also compiled data on false starts and self-interruptions. We then compare the two groups, with regards to prevalence of the investigated features and durational aspects of speech. Prosodic features of language in speakers with MCI and HC differ in subtle ways, and the difference can result both from specific linguistic impairments in speakers with MCI, and general cognitive deterioration affecting perceptual speed and executive functioning. Our results show that speakers with MCI tend to have a somewhat lower articulation rate and they also display more false starts than HC. False starts may be attributed to semantic difficulties, whereas lower articulation rate may be better explained by a decrease in perceptual processing speed, especially when seen in read speech. Persons with MCI experience impairments both in language and in other cognitive functions, and these difficulties are detectable in the prosodic aspects of their language. References: Dixon, R. A., Garrett, D. D., Lentz, T. L., Macdonald, S. W. S., Strauss, E., & Hultsch, D. F. (2007). Neurocognitive Markers of Cognitive Impairment : Exploring the Roles of Speed and Inconsistency. Neuropsychology, 21(3), 381–399. Taler, V., & Phillips, N. A. (2008). Language performance in Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment: a comparative review. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 30(5), 501–556. https://doi.org/10.1080/13803390701550128.