Wed, 22 Jun 2022 09:13:48 GMT 2022-06-22T09:13:48Z <div>Objective: Previous research suggests that engaging in mentally stimulating tasks may im-</div> <br><div>prove brain health and cognitive abilities. Using computer search engines to find information</div> <br><div>on the Internet has become a frequent daily activity of people at any age, including middle-</div> <br><div>aged and older adults. As a preliminary means of exploring the possible influence of Internet</div> <br><div>experience on brain activation patterns, the authors performed functional magnetic resonance</div> <br><div>imaging (MRI) of the brain in older persons during search engine use and explored whether</div> <br><div>prior search engine experience was associated with the pattern of brain activation during</div> <br><div>Internet use. Design: Cross-sectional, exploratory observational study Participants: The au-</div> <br><div>thors studied 24 subjects (age, 55&ndash;76 years) who were neurologically normal, of whom 12 had</div> <br><div>minimal Internet search engine experience (Net Naive group) and 12 had more extensive</div> <br><div>experience (Net Savvy group). The mean age and level of education were similar in the two</div> <br><div>groups. Measurements: Patterns of brain activation during functional MRI scanning were</div> <br><div>determined while subjects performed a novel Internet search task, or a control task of reading</div> <br><div>text on a computer screen formatted to simulate the prototypic layout of a printed book, where</div> <br><div>the content was matched in all respects, in comparison with a nontext control task. Results:</div> <br><div>The text reading task activated brain regions controlling language, reading, memory, and</div> <br><div>visual abilities, including left inferior frontal, temporal, posterior cingulate, parietal, and</div> <br><div>occipital regions, and both the magnitude and the extent of brain activation were similar in</div> <br><div>the Net Naive and Net Savvy groups. During the Internet search task, the Net Naive group</div> <br><div>showed an activation pattern similar to that of their text reading task, whereas the Net Savvy</div> <br><div>group demonstrated significant increases in signal intensity in additional regions controlling</div> <br><div>decision making, complex reasoning, and vision, including the frontal pole, anterior temporal</div> <br><div>region, anterior and posterior cingulate, and hippocampus. Internet searching was associated</div> <br><div>with a more than twofold increase in the extent of activation in the major regional clusters in</div> <br><div>the Net Savvy group compared with the Net Naive group (21,782 versus 8,646 total activated</div> <br><div>voxels). Conclusion: Although the present findings must be interpreted cautiously in light of</div> <br><div>the exploratory design of this study, they suggest that Internet searching may engage a greater</div> <br><div>extent of neural circuitry not activated while reading text pages but only in people with prior</div> <br><div>computer and Internet search experience. These observations suggest that in middle-aged and</div> <br><div>older adults, prior experience with Internet searching may alter the brain&rsquo;s responsiveness in</div> <br><div>neural circuits controlling decision making and complex reasoning.(Am J Geriatr Psychiatry</div> <br><div>2009; 17:116 &ndash;126)</div> <br><div><br />Key Words: Brain activation, functional MRI, Internet search, middle-age and older</div> <br><div>adults, computer experience</div> Info