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Arterial Oxygen Desaturation Hinders Gamified Working Memory Performance
Jason M Keeler1, Jennifer B Listman2, M Jo Hite1
1H.H. Morris Human Performance Laboratories, Department of Kinesiology, Indiana University School of Public Health, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA.
Military Medicine
|August 5, 2024
Summary
Moderate hypoxia, or low oxygen levels, impairs cognitive function, specifically working memory performance in a gamified assessment. This study shows decreased oxygen saturation negatively impacts recall accuracy and reaction time, highlighting the need for monitoring in high-risk environments.
Area of Science:
- Aerospace Medicine
- Environmental Physiology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
Background:
- Hypoxia poses a significant challenge to Warfighters in aviation and subterranean operations, reducing cognitive function.
- Moderate hypoxia (FiO2 0.11-0.14) can impair complex tasks like working memory, with individualistic symptom recognition difficulties.
- Gamified cognitive assessments may offer objective feedback for safety protocols during hypoxia, but their sensitivity is unproven.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether gamified working memory assessments are sensitive to moderate normobaric hypoxia.
- To test the hypothesis that moderate hypoxia decreases gamified working memory performance, considering individual arterial oxygen saturation responses.
Main Methods:
- 30 healthy adults completed a gamified working memory task (Backtracker) under moderate hypoxia (FiO2=0.138) and normoxia.
- Assessments were conducted at baseline, 60, and 90 minutes post-exposure, with arterial oxyhemoglobin saturation (SpO2) monitored via pulse oximetry.
- Data were analyzed using linear mixed effects modeling to account for individual responses.
Main Results:
- Hypoxia significantly reduced SpO2 compared to normoxia.
- Decreased SpO2 was associated with significant reductions in recalling the correct location and order of tiles.
- Reduced SpO2 correlated with decreased median time to first tap and median time between taps, indicating faster, less planned movements.
Conclusions:
- Moderate hypoxic exposure significantly hinders performance on a gamified working memory task.
- Decreased SpO2 during hypoxia negatively impacts the accuracy of spatial and temporal memory recall.
- Faster movement execution times under hypoxia may contribute to memory errors, underscoring the need for monitoring cognitive function.
