ABSTRACT

We investigated whether pupil size can variate with the intensity of cognitive processing in patients with behavioral-variant-Frontotemporal-Dementia (bvFTD). We invited five bvFTD participants and 21 controls to perform forward spans and backward spans, and, in a control condition, to count aloud. We recorded pupil activity using eye-tracking-glasses during the spans and control condition. Analysis demonstrated larger pupil sizes during backward spans than during forward spans, and larger pupil sizes during forward spans than during counting in both bvFTD and control participants. These findings demonstrate how increased cognitive load triggers increased pupil size and how this connection is maintained in bvFTD.

摘要

我们研究了行为变异型额颞叶痴呆（bvFTD）患者的瞳孔大小是否会随着认知处理强度的变化而变化。我们邀请了 5 名 bvFTD 参与者和 21 名对照者来执行向前跨度和向后跨度，并在对照条件下大声计数。我们在跨度和控制条件下使用眼动追踪眼镜记录瞳孔活动。分析表明，bvFTD 和对照参与者在向后跨度期间的瞳孔尺寸大于向前跨度期间的瞳孔尺寸，并且在向前跨度期间的瞳孔尺寸大于计数期间的瞳孔尺寸。这些发现证明了认知负荷的增加如何触发瞳孔大小的增加，以及这种联系如何在 bvFTD 中维持。