Effects of Electronic Sports on Community‐Dwelling Older Adults With Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Randomized Controlled Study

AIM: Electronic sports (eSports) are sports in which multiple players compete in video games with a defined set of rules. This may have an impact on cognitive function or psychiatric symptoms in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI); however, it has not been extensively studied. This study aimed to examine whether eSports could improve cognitive function and psychiatric symptoms in older adults with MCI. METHODS: This was a single-blind, two-arm, randomized controlled study. Thirty-four community-dwelling older adults with MCI were randomly assigned to either the intervention (60 min once a week for 8 weeks) or control group. Participants were assessed for cognitive function (global cognition, attention, and executive function) and psychiatric symptoms (depression and apathy) before and after the intervention. Changes in prefrontal cortex activation during verbal fluency tasks were also preliminarily examined in some participants using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). RESULTS: Both groups showed improved global cognition; however, the group interaction was not significant. No significant changes in attention, executive function, or psychiatric symptoms were observed in either group. Hemodynamic data showed no significant changes in the prefrontal cortex activation pre- and post-intervention in the two groups as well. CONCLUSIONS: The effects of eSports on cognitive function and psychiatric symptoms in older adults with MCI could not be confirmed in the present study. The potential of eSports to enhance cognition and alleviate psychiatric symptoms in older adults warrants further investigation through larger, rigorously designed studies to establish its efficacy.