Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) affect more than 10% of
adults who are age 65 and older, but the toll of ADRD is most devastating among
older African Americans. COVID-19 widened these disparities; in addition to
being more susceptible to COVID-19 infection and fatalities, older African
Americans are more likely to experience digital and technical inequities. This puts
them at risk for the development/worsening of depression, anxiety, cognitive
impairment and sleep disturbances.
This project will evaluate several traditional and mobile health tools for
remotely monitoring the effects of social isolation on cognition and mental
health in older African Americans with baseline cognitive complaints. By
testing three different strategies, we will identify the most effective,
feasible and subject-preferred approach to collecting cognitive and mental
health data which will help address brain health disparities.
More than a million people in the US sustain a mild traumatic brain injury
(mTBI) every year, and many report difficulties with attention, memory and
other thinking abilities months and even years following their injury. A promising
treatment option is cognitive rehabilitation, but the full-length (20 hours),
in-person intervention is not feasible for many people due to time and
financial constraints.
This study will evaluate a brief (6 hours), virtual cognitive rehabilitation
intervention developed for individuals with persisting cognitive difficulties
after mTBI. We will evaluate several outcomes related to improving patient care
including treatment satisfaction, feasibility of this intervention when using
telehealth and preliminary effectiveness. The proposed treatment aims to
provide the same clinical impact of traditional cognitive rehabilitation while
reducing burden and increasing access.
We aim to determine the accuracy and specificity of Arterial spin labeling (ASL) — a non‐invasive perfusion technique used in MRI to track cerebral blood flow — in measuring vascular and glial‐dependent water transfer to establish whether it is a valuable clinical tool in Alzheimer’s disease. This simple and safe technique, already approved for use in a clinical setting, has potential to circumvent current invasive approaches in human subjects at risk for AD‐related dementias.
The proposed research will be a preliminary investigation into the potential association between microbiota abundance, hormone levels, peripheral inflammation and current symptoms (psychiatric and cognitive) in Veterans with and without a history of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). This work has the potential to form a new line of research that could ultimately provide new treatment options for individuals who have persisting symptoms following mTBI.
Perinatal Psychiatry Case Conference Series is a CME-accredited program for providers in Washington State who want to improve the mental health of their pregnant and postpartum patients.
Facilitated by a multidisciplinary team including UW Medicine perinatal psychiatrists, obstetrician gynecologists, maternal fetal medicine experts, advanced registered nurse practitioners, therapists and social workers, the program aims to increase frontline provider capacity to address common mental disorders in pregnancy and postpartum. Program format is brief didactic followed by in depth case presentation and discussion.
This multi-component project aims to (1) gather information about the digital-health related needs, interests, and preferences of young adults with early psychosis and their families, and (2) develop digital health resources that meet those needs. We have collaborated with colleagues to identify interests and needs of family caregivers, and are currently surveying affected young adults. We are also working with a software developer to build a Beta version of a family caregiver-facing mobile health tool providing relevant support and psychoeducation.
