Peer-reviewed article
Eye-tracking working memory intervention in young people with severe dyskinetic cerebral palsy: a pilot study.
Saranda Bekteshi, Alexandra Kalkantzi, Evelien Martens, Bernard Dan, Roser Pueyo ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study tested whether young people with severe dyskinetic cerebral palsy could use eye-tracking technology to complete a computerised working memory training programme. Four participants aged 14-20 completed five weeks of intensive training, with all of them finishing 23-25 sessions. Both the trained working memory skills and some untrained cognitive abilities improved after the intervention, with improvements mostly lasting three months later. The researchers conclude that eye-tracking training is feasible for this group but note that larger studies are needed to confirm whether the benefits generalise to everyday life.
Key points
- All four participants completed the 5-week training with 100% adherence, demonstrating feasibility of eye-tracking technology for cognitive training in severe dyskinetic cerebral palsy
- Trained working memory scores improved by 10.5 to 27 points post-intervention and were largely maintained at 3-month follow-up
- Untrained working memory scores also improved (12 to 21 points), suggesting some generalisation of training effects
- Far-transfer effects to fluid reasoning, visuospatial reasoning and everyday executive functioning were inconsistent across participants
- Eye-tracking provided an accessible interface for cognitive training where traditional assessment and intervention methods are limited by motor and speech impairments
Limitations
This is a small pilot study with only four participants and no control group, making it impossible to determine whether improvements would have occurred without intervention or how they compare to standard approaches. The inconsistent far-transfer effects and small sample mean the findings cannot yet establish whether working memory improvements translate to meaningful benefits in daily life.
Abstract
Working memory (WM) is fundamental to learning, reasoning and everyday functioning and is frequently impaired in cerebral palsy (CP). In severe dyskinetic CP, profound motor and speech impairments limit access to reliable cognitive assessment and intervention. Eye-tracking technology may provide an accessible interface for computerised cognitive training. This study examined the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of adaptive eye-tracking WM training in four young people with severe dyskinetic CP (14-20 years; all female). Participants completed a 5-week intensive Cogmed training (five sessions/week) using the Light (n = 3) or Standard (n = 1) version. Tobii PCEye Mini eye-tracker was used for training; assessments were conducted at baseline, post-intervention and 3-month follow-up using Tobii Dynavox TD Pilot integrated with the Pearson Q-interactive platform. Near-transfer outcomes comprised Cogmed Improvement Index (trained WM) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fifth Edition (WISC-V) Picture Span score (untrained WM). Far-transfer outcomes included WISC-V fluid reasoning, visuospatial reasoning and planning; language comprehension using the Computer-Based instrument for Low motor Language Testing (C-BiLLT) and everyday executive functioning (Behaviour Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Second Edition) reported by parents and teachers. All participants completed 23-25 sessions within five weeks, corresponding to 100% adherence; mean session duration ranged from 22 to 34 min. Trained (+10.5 to +27) and untrained WM (+12 to +21) scores increased post-intervention, with gains largely maintained at follow-up. Far-transfer effects were inconsistent across participants. Adaptive eye-tracking WM training appears feasible in severe dyskinetic CP and may yield cognitive benefits. Larger controlled studies are needed to establish efficacy and generalisation of training effects.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- Adaptive eye-tracking computerised working memory training (Cogmed) delivered intensively over 5 weeks (5 sessions per week) using eye-tracker technology (Tobii PCEye Mini) as the interface
- Population
- Four young people with severe dyskinetic cerebral palsy, aged 14-20 years, all female
Key finding
100% adherence: all four participants completed 23-25 sessions within the 5-week period
Bekteshi et al. · PubMed (US National Library of Medicine) · 21 Jul 2026