Overview
- ACTIVE, a randomized trial begun in the late 1990s, assigned more than 2,800 adults aged 65+ to speed, memory, reasoning training or control, with up to 10 one-hour sessions and randomized booster sessions at roughly 11 and 35 months.
- Only participants in the speed-of-processing arm who received booster sessions showed about a 25% lower incidence of a dementia diagnosis over 20 years compared with controls, while memory and reasoning training showed no significant effect.
- Dementia outcomes were identified through linkage to Medicare claims over 5-, 10-, and 20-year follow-ups, enabling long-term ascertainment without specialist clinical adjudication.
- The speed task, known as Double Decision and now offered via BrainHQ, is adaptive and trains divided attention and rapid visual processing; Posit Science markets the program and has disclosed ties with a study author.
- Researchers and outside experts highlight limitations including initially healthy, selected participants, potential healthy-user bias among booster completers, and the need for replication and mechanistic studies before broad recommendations.