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Antisaccade task reflects cortical involvement in mild cognitive impairment
Heuer HW, Mirsky JB, Kong EL, Dickerson BC, Miller BL, Kramer JH, Boxer AL.. Neurology, 2013-08-28
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Objective The aims of this study were to examine executive dysfunction using an antisaccade (AS) task in normal elderly (NE) and patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer disease (AD) as well as to evaluate the relationship between AS performance and cortical thinning within AD-associated regions. Methods We recorded eye movements in 182 subjects (NE: 118; MCI: 36; AD: 28) during an AS task. We also performed neuropsychological measures of executive function for comparison. Brain MRI scans were collected on most subjects, and cortical thickness was determined in 9 regions known to exhibit atrophy in AD dementia ("AD signature"). We investigated the relationships between AS and neuropsychological performance, as well as possible correlations between AS performance and cortical thickness. Results AS performance in MCI resembled that in NE; subjects with AD were impaired relative to both MCI and NE. In all subjects, AS performance correlated with neuropsychological measures of executive function, even after controlling for disease severity. In the subjects with MCI but not in NE, cortical thickness in frontoparietal AD signature regions correlated with AS performance. Conclusions The AS task is a useful measure of executive function across the AD spectrum. In MCI, AS performance may reflect disease burden within cortical brain regions involved in oculomotor control; however, AS impairments in NE may have etiologies other than incipient AD.
Key findings
- Results AS performance in MCI resembled that in NE; subjects with AD were impaired relative to both MCI and NE.
Why it matters
This study found that performance on an eye-movement task was impaired in people with Alzheimer's disease but not in those with mild cognitive impairment, and in mild cognitive impairment it correlated with thinning in certain cortical regions. It is a study of a cognitive test and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention.
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Study details
- Participants182
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 52/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2013 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 182 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 101 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 6.7 citations a year over 15 year(s) since 2013 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 3.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 26 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Adam L. Boxer: h-index 98 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 23986300) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 52 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Heuer, H. W., Mirsky, J. B., Kong, E. L., Dickerson, B. C., Miller, B. L., Kramer, J. H., et al. (2013). Antisaccade task reflects cortical involvement in mild cognitive impairment. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0b013e3182a6cbfe
Vancouver
Heuer HW, Mirsky JB, Kong EL, Dickerson BC, Miller BL, Kramer JH, et al. Antisaccade task reflects cortical involvement in mild cognitive impairment. Neurology. 2013. doi:10.1212/wnl.0b013e3182a6cbfe. PMID: 23986300.
BibTeX
@article{heuer2013-23986300,
author = {Heuer, H. W. and Mirsky, J. B. and Kong, E. L. and Dickerson, B. C. and Miller, B. L. and Kramer, J. H. and Boxer, A. L.},
title = {{Antisaccade task reflects cortical involvement in mild cognitive impairment}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2013},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.0b013e3182a6cbfe},
pmid = {23986300},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0b013e3182a6cbfe}
}
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