Research Shows Potential of Smartphone Applications for Brain Health Assessment in Rural Communities

Smartphone applications may be an effective, scalable, low-cost, adaptable strategy for assessing brain health in rural communities, according to research presented at the 2023 meeting of the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The results are from an ongoing Bogalusa Heart Study (BHS) cohort consisting of rural Louisiana-based communities, where most participants successfully set up a brain health–monitoring application and completed at least one set of assessment tasks. The results were consistent across race and sex groups.

The study has so far enrolled 94 participants from the multi-site BHS cohort of communities in rural Louisiana. The average age of participants is 56 years, 69% of participants are women, and 19% are Black. The smartphone application administers tasks to assess brain health as a factor of cognition, gait, balance, and speech during a 2-week session every 3 months. Participants have the option to complete the application set up at the BHS study site, or to remotely follow guidance distributed through phone calls and text messages. Participants also receive text messages consisting of task reminders, instructions, and illustrative examples.

So far, 77 (82%) of the 94 participants completed smartphone application installation, with 69 doing so at a study site, and 8 following instructions remotely. Of these participants, 62 (81%) have completed at least one set of assessment tasks. Completion rates did not differ significantly across sex groups (women, n = 45 [82%]; men, n = 17 [85%]; P=.75), or race groups (Black, n = 10 [77%]; White, n = 52 [84%]; P=.54).

The results demonstrate the potential of digital platforms for collecting precise, frequent brain health data from diverse populations in studies of Alzheimer disease and related dementias. The study is being conducted by researchers from Boston University, Tulane University, Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative, Rowan University, and the University of Massachusetts.