The trail making test: A study in focal lesion patients.

Abstract

The relationship of the Trail Making Test (TMT) to the frontal lobes was tested by comparing patients with damage to the frontal and nonfrontal regions to control participants. Although the analysis of time measurements, both raw and transformed, showed notable slowing of frontal groups, error analysis proved to be a more useful method of categorizing performance. Analysis of errors on Part B indicated that all patients who made more than 1 error had frontal lesions. Dividing the frontal damaged patients into subgroups on the basis of the number of errors yielded specificity of brain-behavior relations within the frontal lobes. Patients with damage in dorsolateral frontal areas were most impaired. Those with inferior medial damage to the frontal lobes were not significantly affected in TMT Part B performance.

INECO Frontal Screening (IFS): A brief, sensitive, and specific tool to assess executive functions in dementia – ERRATUM

“…Stuss and Levine ( 2002) reported a series of studies where the inclusion of the WCST as a "frontal measure" in neuropsychological batteries was strongly justifi ed, describing frontal activation during the execution of this task. In this same way, the phonological verbal fl uency task is traditionally considered to be capable of refl ecting left frontal functioning in particular (Milner, 1971 ), and the time performance of the Trail Making Test-Part B is sensitive to frontal pathology (Stuss et al, 2001 ). The excellent correlations found between these well-established frontal tests and the IFS demonstrate a close association between the total IFS score and executive dysfunction in our groups of patients.…”

Predictors of decision-making on the Iowa Gambling Task: Independent effects of lifetime history of substance use disorders and performance on the Trail Making Test

“…Disruption of circuitry between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and subcortical structures leads to impairments of reasoning, mental flexibility, and other abilities generally classified as executive functions, including performance on Trails B (Stuss et al, 2001;Tekin & Cummings, 2002). Although the IGT has been considered an orbitofrontal task, recent research suggests that dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is also involved in decision-making on the IGT (Fellows & Farah, 2005).…”

Brazilian norms and effects of age and education on the Hayling and Trail Making Tests

“…11 The applicability of the TMT has been demonstrated in neurological adult samples, including people with mild cognitive impairment and dementia. 12 The current study aims to present norms for the Hayling Test and the TMT for the Brazilian population.…”