{"158301":{"#nid":"158301","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Home-Based Assessment Tool for Dementia Screening","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EWith baby boomers approaching the age of 65 and new cases of Alzheimer\u2019s disease expected to increase by 50 percent by the year 2030, Georgia Tech researchers have created a tool that allows adults to screen themselves for early signs of dementia. The home-based computer software is patterned after the paper-and-pencil Clock Drawing Test, one of health care\u2019s most commonly used screening exams for cognitive impairment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cTechnology allows us to check our weight, blood-sugar levels and blood pressure, but not our own cognitive abilities,\u201d said project leader Ellen Yi-Luen Do. \u201cOur ClockMe System helps older adults identify early signs of impairment, while allowing clinicians to quickly analyze the test results and gain valuable insight into the patient\u2019s thought processes.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech\u2019s ClockMe system eliminates the paper trail and computerizes the test into two main components: the ClockReader Application and the ClockAnalyzer Application. Click \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=MEbWeiKxd0c\u0022\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E to see a video demo.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EClockReader is the actual test and is taken with a stylus and computer or tablet. The participant is given a specific time and instructed to draw a clock with numbers and the correct minute and hour hands. Once completed, the sketch is emailed to a clinician, who uses the ClockAnalyzer Application to score the test. The software checks for 13 traits. They include correct placement of numbers and hands without extra markings. People with cognitive impairment frequently draw clocks with missing or extra numbers. Digits are sometimes drawn outside of the clock. The time is often incorrect.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to scoring automatically and consistently, ClockAnalyzer records the duration of the test and the time between each stroke. The software also replays the drawing in real-time, allowing a clinician to watch the drawing being created to observe any behavior abnormality.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe traditional paper-and-pencil test is usually overseen by a technician and later scored by a clinician, who scores the test based only on the finished drawing,\u201d said Do, a professor in Georgia Tech\u2019s Colleges of Computing and Architecture. \u201cBy looking at the sketch, the scorer is not able to decipher whether the person struggled to remember certain numbers while drawing the clock. The ClockMe system\u2019s timing software highlights those delays.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnd, because they\u2019re saved electronically, the drawings can be used to easily compare a person\u2019s cognitive ability progress or regression over time. Do\u2019s research found that traditional tests are often filed in a folder and are rarely used for future comparison.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe ClockMe system was initially tested at the Emory Alzheimer\u2019s Disease Research Center in Atlanta, where it\u2019s currently being used in addition to the traditional paper-and-pencil test. Despite a lack of computer literacy, all of the elderly patients who used the software during the study said they had no problems with the pen-based, computer technology.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cFor this reason, as well as the ability to send the drawings directly to clinicians for convenient scoring, we envision ClockMe as a viable tool for home-based screening,\u201d said Do. \u201cAmerica\u2019s health care costs are expected to soar as baby boomers become senior citizens. If a screening tool can be used at home, unnecessary trips to clinics can be eliminated and medical expenses can be saved.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDo and her colleagues are hoping to commercialize the project in the future. Their research was \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/iospress.metapress.com\/content\/b0841g7827151q34\/?p=f2fca69c7d9b46fb9de44239d5b178df\u0026amp;pi=4\u0022\u003Epublished\u003C\/a\u003E in September\u2019s Journal of Ambient Intelligence and Smart Environments.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThis project is supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) (Award Number SHB-1117665). The content is solely the responsibility of the principal investigators and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NSF. \u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EWith baby boomers approaching the age of 65 and new cases of Alzheimer\u2019s disease expected to increase by 50 percent by the year 2030, Georgia Tech researchers have created a tool that allows adults to screen themselves for early signs of dementia. The home-based computer software is patterned after the paper-and-pencil Clock Drawing Test, one of health care\u2019s most commonly used screening exams for cognitive impairment.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Georgia Tech researchers have created a tool that allows adults to screen themselves for early signs of dementia."}],"uid":"27560","created_gmt":"2012-10-01 18:14:53","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:12:54","author":"Jason Maderer","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2012-10-02T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2012-10-02T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"158271":{"id":"158271","type":"image","title":"ClockMe System 1","body":null,"created":"1449178883","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:41:23","changed":"1475894792","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:46:32","alt":"ClockMe System 1","file":{"fid":"195348","name":"dscn1345.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/dscn1345_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/dscn1345_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2533123,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/dscn1345_0.jpg?itok=CMEM510F"}},"158281":{"id":"158281","type":"image","title":"ClockMe System 2","body":null,"created":"1449178883","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:41:23","changed":"1475894792","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:46:32","alt":"ClockMe System 2","file":{"fid":"195349","name":"dscn1347.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/dscn1347_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/dscn1347_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2519660,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/dscn1347_0.jpg?itok=QfKzAl9q"}},"158291":{"id":"158291","type":"image","title":"Sample Clock Drawing-Impairment","body":null,"created":"1449178883","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:41:23","changed":"1475894794","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:46:34","alt":"Sample Clock Drawing-Impairment","file":{"fid":"195350","name":"dementia-clock.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/dementia-clock_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/dementia-clock_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":21028,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/dementia-clock_0.jpg?itok=6lkURDGq"}}},"media_ids":["158271","158281","158291"],"groups":[{"id":"1183","name":"Home"}],"categories":[{"id":"137","name":"Architecture"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"44881","name":"Alzheimer\u0027s Disease"},{"id":"1945","name":"Ellen Yi-luen Do"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39501","name":"People and Technology"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EJason Maderer\u003Cbr \/\u003EMedia Relations\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:maderer@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Emaderer@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E404-385-2966\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["maderer@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}