NeuroTalk Support Groups - Simple Dot Test May Help Gauge Progression of Dopamine Loss in Parkinson's Disease

Simplicity may be the key to advancement in PD measurement:

A pilot study by a multi-disciplinary team of investigators at Georgetown University suggests that a simple dot test could help doctors gauge the extent of dopamine loss in individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD). Their study was presented at Neuroscience 2013, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.

The TLT tests implicit learning, a type of learning that occurs without awareness or intent, which relies on the caudate nucleus, an area of the brain affected by loss of dopamine.

The test is a sequential learning task that does not require complex motor skills, which tend to decline in people with PD. In the TLT, participants see four open circles, see two red dots appear, and are asked to respond when they see a green dot appear. Unbeknownst to them, the location of the first red dot predicts the location of the green target. Participants learn implicitly where the green target will appear, and they become faster and more accurate in their responses.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...1109192838.htm