Subtle differences in handwriting could indicate cognitive decline (Image: Getty)
A person’s handwriting can provide a “window to the brain” and reveal early signs of cognitive decline, according to researchers. Cognitive decline includes the gradual loss of thinking, memory and reasoning skills, which can be a precursor to more serious changes such as mild cognitive impairment or dementia. Experts around the world are searching for methods to detect the earliest signs of brain health changes, when treatments are more likely to be successful.
A team in Portugal investigated whether handwriting tests could be a potential diagnostic tool. Dr Ana Rita Matias, an assistant professor at the Department of Sport and Health at the University of Évora, said: “Writing is not just a motor activity, it’s a window into the brain. We found that older adults with cognitive impairment displayed distinct patterns in the timing and organisation of their handwriting movements.
“Tasks involving higher cognitive demands showed that cognitive decline is reflected in how efficiently and coherently handwriting movements are organised over time.”
The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, examined whether features such as writing speed and stroke organisation differed between people who had been diagnosed with cognitive decline and those who were healthy.
Researchers recruited 58 adults aged between 62 and 92 who were living in care homes. Some 38 had preciously been diagnosed with a form of mild cognitive impairment. Using a digital tablet and pen, they completed several tasks including one where they were asked to draw 10 horizontal lines within 20 seconds. A handwriting task included writing out two sentences of varying complexity that were either shown on a card or dictated.
The researchers found that the drawing and copying tasks did not show significant differences between those with cognitive decline and those without, possibly because they were too simple. However, there were clear differences between the two groups during the dictation task.
Dr Matias said: “Dictation tasks are more sensitive because they require the brain to do multiple things at once: listen, process language, convert sounds into written form, and coordinate movement.
Participants completed a series of writing tasks (Image: Ana Rita Silva)
“Even within dictation tasks, differences can emerge. A longer, less predictable, or linguistically demanding sentence places greater strain on cognitive resources.”
Start time and the number of strokes were found to differ markedly between people with cognitive impairment and those with healthy cognition. Researchers hope their findings could be used to develop cheap diagnostic tests that can be used by doctors to identify early signs of brain decline.
Dr Matias said: “Timing and stroke organisation are closely linked to how the brain plans and executes actions, which depends on working memory and executive control. As these cognitive systems decline, writing becomes slower, more fragmented, and less coordinated.
“In contrast, other features can remain relatively preserved, especially in the early stages of cognitive decline, making them less sensitive indicators. The long-term goal is to develop a tool that is easy to administer, time-efficient, and affordable, allowing integration into everyday healthcare contexts without requiring specialised or expensive equipment.”
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
