Executive Functions in Elite Athletes

September 30, 2022 updated by: mehmet akif akinci, Istanbul Medipol University Hospital

Comparison of the Executive Functions of Elite Team-Sport and Individual-Sport Athletes

In the study, it was aimed to compare the executive functions of elite athletes who do team sports and individual sports with each other and with individuals who do not do sports.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

In the study, it was aimed to compare the executive functions of elite athletes who do team sports and individual sports with each other and with individuals who do not do sports. 60 elite athletes participating in national and international competitions between the ages of 20-30, affiliated to the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Youth and Sports and federations, and 30 individuals who did not do sports for the control group were included in the study group. Of the elite athletes, 30 were included in the team sports group and 30 in the individual sports group. Executive functions Forward and Backward Digit Span Test, Stroop Test, Trail Making Test A and B form (TMT-A, TMT-B) and Tower of London (ToL) Test evaluated with.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
90

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey
    • Istanbul
      • Beykoz, Istanbul, Turkey, 34815
        • Istanbul Medipol University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

20 years to 30 years (ADULT)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Elite athletes participating in national and international competitions in Turkish Basketball Federation, Turkish Volleyball Federation and Turkish Football Federation clubs and Gaziantep Youth Sports Center

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Be between 20-30 years old
  • Have been doing sports for at least 5 years
  • Being an elite athlete
  • Being actively involved in sports

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Having any psychological or neurological disease

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Team Sports
30 elite athletes between the ages of 20-30 who are interested in team sports
Behavioral: Executive Function Assessment
Digit Span (Forward and Backward) Test, Stroop Test, Trail Making Test A and B forms, Tower of London Test were used to evaluate executive functions.
Other Names:
  • Digit Span Test
  • Stroop Test
  • Trail Making Test
  • London Tower Test
Individual Sports
30 elite athletes between the ages of 20-30 who are interested in individual sports
Behavioral: Executive Function Assessment
Digit Span (Forward and Backward) Test, Stroop Test, Trail Making Test A and B forms, Tower of London Test were used to evaluate executive functions.
Other Names:
  • Digit Span Test
  • Stroop Test
  • Trail Making Test
  • London Tower Test
Control Group
30 healthy individuals between the ages of 20-30 who are not interested in sports
Behavioral: Executive Function Assessment
Digit Span (Forward and Backward) Test, Stroop Test, Trail Making Test A and B forms, Tower of London Test were used to evaluate executive functions.
Other Names:
  • Digit Span Test
  • Stroop Test
  • Trail Making Test
  • London Tower Test

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
London Tower Test
Time Frame: day 1
The Tower of London test is an executive function test that is particularly sensitive to planning and problem-solving skills. The Tower of London test consists of 2 tower boards and red, blue and green beads. The participant is asked to make the same shape on the tower board of the tester opposite him on his own tower board in the fewest moves. A low total score and a high correct total score indicate good planning and problem-solving abilities. The high score of total rule mistake indicates the negativities in the ability to acquire and control planning and problem-solving behavior under certain rules. The excess of the total time out indicates the difficulty in planning and problem-solving skills at a certain time. The shortness of the onset time indicates effective planning before the problem-solving response begins. The application time and the shortness of the total time indicate the speed of problem-solving.
day 1

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Digit Span Test
Time Frame: day 1
The test consists of two parts forward and backward span. The participant is asked to repeat the numbers read in one second intervals in the forward span in the same order. It assesses attention, concentration and short-term memory. In the backward span, the numbers read at one-second intervals are requested to be repeated in reverse order from the end to the beginning. Working memory, which is a component of executive functions, is evaluated. The highest score that can be obtained for the forward span is 8 points, and 7 for the backward span, for a total of 15 points.
day 1
Stroop Test
Time Frame: day 1
The Stroop test evaluates inhibitory control, which is a component of executive functions. On the card we used as test material, the words blue, green, red, yellow are written and painted in a different color than the word. The person is first asked to read the colored words printed unrelated to the color. In the second step, the person is asked to say the color of the colored words written unrelated to the color on which they are printed. The time from the "start" command to the end, the number of errors and corrections are recorded. The time difference between the two stages constitutes the interference score. Error and correction numbers are calculated. The long duration of interference, errors and corrections indicate that the person's attention is easily distracted and cannot suppress inappropriate stimuli.
day 1
Trail Making Test
Time Frame: day 1
The Trail Making test consists of two parts, A and B. In part A, the participants are asked to combine the circles with numbers randomly scattered on the paper in the correct order and follow each other (1-2-3-4-5...). In section B, there are letters and numbers randomly placed in circles. Participants are asked to combine a letter and a number in the correct sequence (1-A-2-B-3-C-4-D...) consecutively. Time is kept for both sections. The duration is expected to be short. The A part of the TMT evaluates the processing speed based on visual scanning ability, and the B part evaluates the complex attention, planning, set changing, inhibition ability, and following the sequencing.
day 1

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Istanbul Medipol University Hospital

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (ACTUAL)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2022

Primary Completion (ACTUAL)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 1, 2022

Study Completion (ACTUAL)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 1, 2022

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
July 13, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 3, 2022

First Posted (ACTUAL)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 4, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 4, 2022

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 30, 2022

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
September 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • AkifAkinci

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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