Prognostic factors for cognitive intervention responsiveness in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review revealing inconsistent methodology and evidence
- 1Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
- 2Medical Psychology, Neuropsychology and Gender Studies & Centre for Neuropsychological Diagnostics and Intervention (CeNDI), Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- 3Neurodegenerative Disorder Unit, Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
Abstract
Cognitive dysfunction is among the most disabling non-motor symptoms experienced by people with Parkinson's disease (PwPD). Although cognitive interventions may improve cognitive functioning, reported effects are generally small and heterogeneous. Therefore, understanding how patient characteristics and intervention features influence responsiveness to cognitive interventions is essential. To date, no systematic review has specifically examined prognostic factors and models associated with responsiveness to cognitive interventions in PwPD. This systematic review aimed to provide an overview of the evidence on prognostic factors and models of responsiveness to cognitive interventions in PwPD. MEDLINE, Web of Science Core Collection, and CINAHL were searched up to June 2025. Full-text publications in English, German, or Italian were eligible for inclusion. Studies were included if they involved PwPD aged ≥18 years, irrespective of sex or cognitive status, and investigated prognostic factors and/or predictive models of responsiveness to cognitive interventions for cognitive or non-cognitive outcomes. Risk of bias was assessed using the Quality in Prognosis Studies (QUIPS) tool. Findings were synthesized narratively by extracting relevant information from the included studies. Twenty-seven publications comprising 835 PwPD were included. Across studies, eleven factor finding approaches and one factor finding model were employed. Individual-related factors (e.g., age, education, cognitive baseline level) were investigated more frequently than intervention-related factors (e.g., analog vs. digital). The most consistent finding was that lower baseline cognitive performance was associated with greater gains following cognitive intervention. Risk-of-bias assessment revealed substantial methodological limitations across studies. The conclusions that can be drawn from the current evidence are limited by considerable heterogeneity in study methodology and investigated factors. Determining which characteristics influence responsiveness to cognitive intervention in PwPD remains an important research gap.
Systematic review registration: PROSPERO https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD420251079163, identifier: CRD420251079163.
Related
- Prognostic value of Murray law-based quantitative flow ratio after percutaneous coronary intervention
- Prognostic Impact of Achilles Tendon Thickening After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention Compared Between Acute and Chronic Coronary Syndromes
- Prognostic Impact of COVID-19 on Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome Undergoing Emergent Percutaneous Coronary Intervention ― Insights From the J-PCI Nationwide Registry ―
- Prognostic Implication of a CT-FFR-Based Functional SYNTAX Score in Coronary Artery Disease Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention
- Prognostic value of chronic total occlusion complexity scoring systems beyond procedural planning: a comparative analysis of five contemporary scores in patients undergoing chronic total occlusion percutaneous coronary intervention
BibTeX
@article{colucci2026prognostic,
title = {{Prognostic factors for cognitive intervention responsiveness in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review revealing inconsistent methodology and evidence}},
author = {Angela Colucci and Martina Berri and Anja Ophey and Eleonora Fiorenzato and Elke Kalbe and Ann-Kristin Folkerts},
journal = {Frontiers in Cognition},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fcogn.2026.1959713},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3389/fcogn.2026.1959713},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Prognostic factors for cognitive intervention responsiveness in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review revealing inconsistent methodology and evidence
AU - Angela Colucci
AU - Martina Berri
AU - Anja Ophey
AU - Eleonora Fiorenzato
AU - Elke Kalbe
AU - Ann-Kristin Folkerts
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/21
JO - Frontiers in Cognition
DO - 10.3389/fcogn.2026.1959713
UR - https://doi.org/10.3389/fcogn.2026.1959713
AB - Cognitive dysfunction is among the most disabling non-motor symptoms experienced by people with Parkinson's disease (PwPD). Although cognitive interventions may improve cognitive functioning, reported effects are generally small and heterogeneous. Therefore, understanding how patient characteristics and intervention features influence responsiveness to cognitive interventions is essential. To date, no systematic review has specifically examined prognostic factors and models associated with responsiveness to cognitive interventions in PwPD. This systematic review aimed to provide an overview of the evidence on prognostic factors and models of responsiveness to cognitive interventions in PwPD. MEDLINE, Web of Science Core Collection, and CINAHL were searched up to June 2025. Full-text publications in English, German, or Italian were eligible for inclusion. Studies were included if they involved PwPD aged ≥18 years, irrespective of sex or cognitive status, and investigated prognostic factors and/or predictive models of responsiveness to cognitive interventions for cognitive or non-cognitive outcomes. Risk of bias was assessed using the Quality in Prognosis Studies (QUIPS) tool. Findings were synthesized narratively by extracting relevant information from the included studies. Twenty-seven publications comprising 835 PwPD were included. Across studies, eleven factor finding approaches and one factor finding model were employed. Individual-related factors (e.g., age, education, cognitive baseline level) were investigated more frequently than intervention-related factors (e.g., analog vs. digital). The most consistent finding was that lower baseline cognitive performance was associated with greater gains following cognitive intervention. Risk-of-bias assessment revealed substantial methodological limitations across studies. The conclusions that can be drawn from the current evidence are limited by considerable heterogeneity in study methodology and investigated factors. Determining which characteristics influence responsiveness to cognitive intervention in PwPD remains an important research gap. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD420251079163, identifier: CRD420251079163.
SN - 2813-4532
ER -