Playing Mahjong for 12 Weeks Improved Executive Function in Elderly People With Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Study of Implications for TBI-Induced Cognitive Deficits

What will it take to get this into all stroke hospitals and used with all stroke patients? 

We 5 lost cognitive years from the stroke, we need something to recover that.

Do we need to whap upside the head all the boards of directors of stroke hospitals with a 2x4 to get them to see the light? 

Playing Mahjong for 12 Weeks Improved Executive Function in Elderly People With Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Study of Implications for TBI-Induced Cognitive Deficits

Han Zhang¹, Yi Peng¹, Chunliu Li¹, Hong Lan¹, Guoqiang Xing^2*, Zhu Chen¹ and Bo Zhang¹

• ¹Department of Medical Rehabilitation, The Affiliated Hospital and the Second Clinical Medical College of North Sichuan Medical University, Nanchong Central Hospital, Nanchong, China
• ²The Affiliated Hospital and the Second Clinical Medical College of North Sichuan Medical University, Nanchong, China

Background: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is common among elderly people. So far, effective treatment that can stabilize or reverse the cognitive decline associated with MCI is lacking. Recent studies suggest that playing mahjong may improve attention and memory in elderly people. However, its effect on executive function remains unknown.

Methods: 56 elderly people (74.3 ± 4.3 years of age) with MCI from the First Social Welfare the First Nursing Home of Nanchong were randomized into mahjong and control groups (N = 28, each group). Subjects in the mahjong group played mahjong three times a week for 12 weeks, while people in the control group assumed normal daily activity. Executive function was evaluated using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment—Beijing (MoCA-B), the Shape Trail Test (STT), and the Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ) before the study and then at 6 and 12 weeks after mahjong administration.

Results: There were no baseline differences in MoCA-B, STT, and FAQ scoring between the two groups. The MoCA-B, STT, and FAQ scores, however, improved significantly in the mahjong group but not in the control group after the 12-week mahjong administration. Significant correlations were also found between STT and FAQ scores.

Conclusions: Playing Mahjong for 12 weeks improved the executive function of elderly people with MCI. Because Mahjong is a simple, low-cost entertainment activity, it could be widely applied to slow down or reverse the progression of cognitive decline in people with MCI, including those with traumatic brain injury.