Objective: To investigate the role of frontal theta oscillation during cognitive control in Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Background: Mid-frontal theta activity underlies cognitive control. These 4-8 Hz rhythms are modulated by cortical dopamine and can be abnormal in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, the role of mid-frontal theta deficits in PD during a task explicitly involving cognitive control has not been investigated.

Methods: Here, we collected scalp EEG from high-performing PD patients (n=28) and demographically matched controls (n=28) during performance of a modified Simon reaction-time task. This task involves cognitive control to adjudicate response conflict and error-related adjustments.

Results: Task performance of PD patients was indistinguishable from controls, but PD patients had less mid-frontal theta modulations around cues and responses. Critically, PD patients had attenuated mid-frontal theta activity specifically associated with response conflict and post-error processing. These signals were unaffected by medication or motor scores. Post-error mid-frontal theta activity was correlated with disease duration. Classification of control vs. PD from these data resulted in a specificity of 69% and a sensitivity of 72%.

Conclusions: These findings help define the scope of mid-frontal theta aberrations during cognitive control in PD, and may provide insight into the nature of PD-related cognitive dysfunction.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/frontal-midline-theta-activity-is-reduced-during-cognitive-control-in-parkinsons-disease/