title: Effect of a human-type communication robot on cognitive function in elderly women living alone.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Considering the high prevalence of dementia, it would be of great value to develop effective tools to improve cognitive function. We examined the effects of a human-type communication robot on cognitive function in elderly women living alone.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this study, 34 healthy elderly female volunteers living alone were randomized to living with either a communication robot or a control robot at home for 8 weeks. The shape, voice, and motion features of the communication robot resemble those of a 3-year-old boy, while the control robot was not designed to talk or nod. Before living with the robot and 4 and 8 weeks after living with the robot, experiments were conducted to evaluate a variety of cognitive functions as well as saliva cortisol, sleep, and subjective fatigue, motivation, and healing.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Mini-Mental State Examination score, judgement, and verbal memory function were improved after living with the communication robot; those functions were not altered with the control robot. In addition, the saliva cortisol level was decreased, nocturnal sleeping hours tended to increase, and difficulty in maintaining sleep tended to decrease with the communication robot, although alterations were not shown with the control. The proportions of the participants in whom effects on attenuation of fatigue, enhancement of motivation, and healing could be recognized were higher in the communication robot group relative to the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrates that living with a human-type communication robot may be effective for improving cognitive functions in elderly women living alone.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Osaka City University Graduate School of Medicine, Abeno-ku, Osaka, Japan. masa-t@msic.med.osaka-cu.ac.jp
authors.forename: Masaaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ishii
authors.forename: Emi
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Yamano
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ogikubo
authors.forename: Masatsugu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okazaki
authors.forename: Kazuro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kamimura
authors.forename: Yasuharu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Konishi
authors.forename: Shigeru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Emoto
authors.forename: Yasuyoshi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Watanabe
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003142:Communication; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism; D007564:Japan; D010991:Plethysmography; D012063:Relaxation / Q000502:physiology; D012371:Robotics / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone