The FDA has been recently cracking down on certain claims of the abilities of “brain-training” software to improve cognitive outcomes, but the results of a newly published study point to the ability of at least some programs to have a clinically significant impact. The BrainHQ software from Posit Science, a San Francisco firm, was tested by the Survirorship Research Group at the University of Sydney, Australia on patients having cognitive impairments post chemotherapy. This condition is better known as “chemobrain”, and it affects a great deal of cancer survivors even years after treatment.
BrainHQ involves tracking objects on a screen and performing a variety of recall exercises. These are not easy, even for healthy persons, and requires a good deal of focus and concentration.
A total of 242 people were involved in the randomized controlled trial, half of which received normal care, while the other half received normal care plus a regular regimen of exercises from BrainHQ. The results showed a significantly improved cognitive performance within the group using BrainHQ exercises, as well as lower stress levels, fatique, anxiety, and depression.