A Pilot to Investigate the Feasibility of Mobile Cognitive Assessment of elderly patients and caregivers in the home

Background:The number of older adults with Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been steadily increasing and is likely to triple by 2050. Parallel increases in AD and informal AD caregivers who experience their own physical and cognitive challenges will result in the need for tools that can help both populations track their cognitive health easily, both in the clinic and at home. Methods: DANA, a tablet-based, FDA-cleared computerized cognitive assessment tool, was used over 90 days among seven caregiver-AD patient dyads in-clinic and at home to assess DANA's sensitivity in detecting mild cognitive impairment and dementia as wellas its feasibility in the home and clinic. Results:DANA is sensitive to certain differences in cognitive performance between AD patients and caregiver. Most subtests were found to be feasible for in-home use among both patients and caregivers. Conclusion:DANA shows promise for use both in-clinic and in the home to track cognitive performance of AD patients and their caregivers.