P300 Wave Alterations and Cognitive Impairment in Cerebellum Lesions

Abstract

Patients with cognitive deficits have a prolonged latency and reduced amplitude of the P300 wave. However, no study has correlated P300 wave alterations with the cognitive performance of patients with cerebellar lesions. We aimed to determine if the cognitive status of these patients was associated with P300 wave alterations. We recruited 30 patients with cerebellar lesions from the wards of the N.R.S. Medical College, Kolkata, in West Bengal (India). The Kolkata Cognitive Screening Battery tasks and the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) were used to assess the cognitive status and the International Cooperative Ataxia Rating Scale (ICARS) for cerebellar signs. We compared the results with the normative data of the Indian population. Patients had P300 wave alterations with a significant increase in latency and a non-significant trend in amplitude. In a multivariate model, P300 wave latency was positively associated with the ICARS kinetic subscale (p = 0.005) and age (p = 0.009), regardless of sex and years of education. In the model that included cognitive variables, P300 wave latency was negatively associated with performance in phonemic fluency (p = 0.035) and construction (p = 0.009). Furthermore, P300 wave amplitude was positively associated with the FAB total score (p < 0.001). In closing, patients with cerebellar lesions had an increase in latency and a decrease in the amplitude of the P300 wave. These P300 wave alterations were also associated with worse cognitive performance and some of the subscales of the ICARS, reinforcing that the cerebellum has motor, cognitive, and affective functions.

The influence of cerebellum on visual selective attention in patients with multiple lacunar cerebral infarction and its neuromodulatory mechanisms

“…Studies have indicated that the frontoparietal lobe plays a crucial role in regulating attentional resources ( Zhang et al, 2022 ), and there is functional connectivity between the cerebellum and the frontoparietal lobe ( Ruan et al, 2023 ). Reductions in P300 amplitude have been observed in patients with cerebellar injury ( Rodriguez-Labrada et al, 2019 ; Nanda et al, 2023 ), suggesting the cerebellum’s involvement in attentional resource allocation. Another study linked the early reduction in P3b wave amplitude following cerebellar infarction to dysfunction in cerebellar projections to the prefrontal and posterior parietal cortex ( Mannarelli et al, 2015 ).…”

“…In contrast, the P3b component reflects attention to task-relevant information and is linked to memory and descending adrenergic parietal activity ( Polich, 2007 ; Masson and Bidet-Caulet, 2019 ; Riby et al, 2023 ). Previous studies, including those examining cerebellar cognitive function ( Rodriguez-Labrada et al, 2019 ; Nanda et al, 2023 ), have demonstrated the vital role of the P300 component in uncovering the involvement of the cerebellum in cognitive functioning.…”