ASSOCIATION OF DIABETES MELLITUS WITH REACTION TIME, COGNITIVE FUNCTION AND PHYSICAL FITNESS

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder with systemic complications that may impair cognitive and motor functions. Simple reaction time (SRT) is a measure of sensory-motor performance and an important indicator of central nervous system processing speed. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of diabetes mellitus on simple reaction time and cognitive abilities decline comparing results between individuals with diabetes and healthy controls. Methods: A review paper based on studies found on PubMed and Google Scholar. The majority of metanalyses and studies involve two groups: a diabetic group (patients diagnosed with type 1 or type 2 diabetes) and a non-diabetic control group. Participants performed a standardized computer-based simple reaction time test. Reaction times were measured and statistically analyzed to assess differences between the groups. Results: The results indicated that individuals with diabetes had significantly longer simple reaction times compared to the control group. The findings suggest that diabetes mellitus negatively affects sensory-motor integration and neural processing speed. Conclusion: The study concludes that diabetes mellitus can impair cognitive-motor function as reflected in prolonged simple reaction times. This highlights the need for cognitive assessment and monitoring in diabetic patients as part of their routine clinical care.