Musical and Verbal Memory in Alzheimer's Disease: A Study of Long-term and Short-term Memory
Journal
Brain and Cognition
Year
2009
Abstract
Musical memory was tested in Alzheimer patients and in healthy older adults using long-term and short-term memory tasks. Long-term memory (LTM) was tested with a recognition procedure using unfamiliar melodies. Short-term memory (STM) was evaluated with same/different judgment tasks on short series of notes. Musical memory was compared to verbal memory using a task that used pseudowords (LTM) or syllables (STM). Results indicated impaired musical memory in AD patients relative to healthy controls. The deficit was found for both long-term and short-term memory. Furthermore, it was of the same magnitude for both musical and verbal domains whether tested with short-term or long-term memory tasks. No correlation was found between musical and verbal LTM. However, there was a significant correlation between verbal and musical STM in AD participants and healthy older adults, which suggests that the two domains may share common mechanisms.
Music and Health Institute Terms
Alzheimer's and Related Dementias; Cognitive Abilities; Elderly; Memory; Neurodegenerative Disorders
Indexed Terms
Elderly; Alzheimer Disease; Analysis of Variance; Auditory Perception; Memory Disorders; Memory, Short-Term; Pattern Recognition, Physiological; Phonetics; Recognition, Psychology
Study Type
Quasi-Experimental Study; Quantitative Methods
PubMed ID
19398148
Document Type
Article
Recommended Citation
Ménard, M. C., & Belleville, S. (2009). Musical and Verbal Memory in Alzheimer's Disease: A Study of Long-term and Short-term Memory. Brain and Cognition, 71 (1), 38-45. Retrieved from https://remix.berklee.edu/mhi-citations/18