Biomedical Signal Processing and Control · Sep 9, 2026
Resting EEG associative biomarkers as indicators of cognitive function in healthy aging: Evidence from a large-cohort study
By Ruiz-Gálvez CR, Santamaría-Vázquez E, Marcos-Martínez D et al.
Age-related cognitive decline is a natural process characterized by a gradual reduction in cognitive abilities. Accurate monitoring tools are essential for tracking cognitive state and detecting early signs of pathological decline, particularly in older adults. Conventional cognitive assessments rely on neuropsychological tests, which are time-consuming and prone to examiner bias. In contrast, electroencephalography (EEG) biomarkers offer an objective and cost-effective approach to characterize cognitive function. In this study, we aimed to identify resting-state EEG biomarkers associated with specific cognitive domains in healthy older adults. Ninety-two volunteers aged 65–75 years underwent a comprehensive cognitive assessment combining a total of 15 digital and conventional tests alongside EEG recordings. Test scores were grouped by domain to compute cognitive indices, which were then correlated with spectral EEG features, with analyses performed separately by sex. Correlation analysis revealed that better working memory and reasoning performance was associated with lower resting beta 2 and gamma power, as well as with reduced median frequency, spectral entropy, and spectral edge frequency across most anatomical regions. Visuospatial and visuoconstructional skills showed analogous relationships, except in relation to median frequency, where no associations were observed. In contrast, higher alpha power in frontal and centro-parietal regions was linked to better performance in this domain. Notably, these associations were significant only in the female subgroup, likely reflecting the greater statistical power of this group. Our findings suggest that the proposed EEG biomarkers could provide valuable information of cognitive state with potential applications in clinical cognitive assessment.