Effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation based on RehaCom software on improving cognitive functions of the elderly

Introduction: In recent years, the trend towards aging in Iran has been very rapid. Since aging causes changes in cognitive and motor functions and disruption in the daily activities of the elderly, so the aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation based on Rehacom software on improving cognitive function in the elderly in Mashhad. Methods: The method of this research was quasi-experimental pre-test-post-test with control and follow-up groups. Initially, volunteer seniors received ACE-R (to screen for cognitive function and eliminate people with dementia) and SCID structured interview. Based on the results, 30 elderly people aged 60 years and older were selected and randomly assigned to two equal experimental and control groups. The intervention for cognitive rehabilitation was performed using RehaCom software in 45-minute daily sessions for two consecutive weeks. The tools used in this study included SDMT, Digit Span and IVA tests that people answered their questions in the pre-test and post-test. Data analyzed using repeated measure analysis of variance.  Results: The results showed that there was a significant difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of working memory, information processing speed and attention and concentration (p <0.001). Conclusion: Cognitive rehabilitation based on RehaCom software has improved the cognitive performance of the experimental group compared to the control group and is one of the useful therapies in this field and can be one of the useful and practical therapies in this field.