Developing an objective assessment of cognitive function (v1)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Predicting the level of cognitive function from standing balance and salivary biomarkers
IRAS ID
311224
Contact name
Jude Offe Krampah
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Northampton
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 5 months, 18 days
Research summary
This research explores new ways of assessing cognitive function using objective measures. This will be invaluable in clinical settings when assessing individuals who present with early symptoms of dementia.
Dementia is the 7th leading cause of death globally, with about 20 million new cases every year and a global cost of US$ 1.3 trillion (WHO, 2021). Additionally, increasing age is the cardinal risk factor of dementia (Brayne et al., 2006). The initial assessment of dementia in most clinical settings is undertaken using subjective test such as the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) (Velayudhan et al., 2014). However, these tests cause considerable distress to the patients who report feeling stupid and embarrassed (Hellström et al., 2007). This can result in a reluctance to seek early diagnosis when interventions are more effective.
This research builds on previous studies which have shown a relationship between standing balance and scores on cognitive tests (Leandri et al., 2009; Leandri et al., 2015). People aged 65 and over will be asked to stand with four foot positions on a balance platform (like bathroom scales) and provide saliva samples to assess some hormones (cortisol and pro-inflammatory cytokines). They will also be asked to complete a short mental function test (Montreal Cognitive Assessment) and a brief walking test (called the “timed-up-and-go” test). All these measures will be taken in a single session, with research activities being conducted at the University of Northampton and participants’ place of residence, such as care homes. This research seeks to produce a model which will predict the cognitive function score from these physical measures. This will help to meet the Prime Minister’s challenge on dementia for the need of early and rapid diagnosis, to aid the adequate provision of services to mitigate the progressive clinical syndrome of dementia (Department of Health, 2015).
REC name
London - Camberwell St Giles Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/LO/0211
Date of REC Opinion
21 Apr 2022
REC opinion
Unfavourable Opinion