Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) art in care of ageing society: focus on dementia

open access articleBackground: Art enhances both physical and mental health wellbeing. The health benefits include reduction in blood pressure, heart rate, pain perception and briefer inpatient stays, as well as improvement of communication skills and self-esteem. In addition to these, people living with dementia benefit from reduction of their noncognitive, behavioural changes, enhancement of their cognitive capacities and being socially active. Methods: The current study represents a narrative general literature review on available studies and knowledge about contribution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in creative arts. Results: We review AI visual arts technologies, and their potential for use among people with dementia and care, drawing on similar experiences to date from traditional art in dementia care. Conclusion: The virtual reality, installations and the psychedelic properties of the AI created art provide a new venue for more detailed research about its therapeutic use in dementia

Lost in spatial translation - A novel tool to objectively assess spatial disorientation in Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia

Spatial disorientation is a prominent feature of early Alzheimer's disease (AD) attributed to degeneration of medial temporal and parietal brain regions, including the retrosplenial cortex (RSC). By contrast, frontotemporal dementia (FTD) syndromes show generally intact spatial orientation at presentation. However, currently no clinical tasks are routinely administered to objectively assess spatial orientation in these neurodegenerative conditions. In this study we investigated spatial orientation in 58 dementia patients and 23 healthy controls using a novel virtual supermarket task as well as voxel-based morphometry (VBM). We compared performance on this task with visual and verbal memory function, which has traditionally been used to discriminate between AD and FTD. Participants viewed a series of videos from a first person perspective travelling through a virtual supermarket and were required to maintain orientation to a starting location. Analyses revealed significantly impaired spatial orientation in AD, compared to FTD patient groups. Spatial orientation performance was found to discriminate AD and FTD patient groups to a very high degree at presentation. More importantly, integrity of the RSC was identified as a key neural correlate of orientation performance. These findings confirm the notion that i) it is feasible to assess spatial orientation objectively via our novel Supermarket task; ii) impaired orientation is a prominent feature that can be applied clinically to discriminate between AD and FTD and iii) the RSC emerges as a critical biomarker to assess spatial orientation deficits in these neurodegenerative conditions

Big data and data repurposing – using existing data to answer new questions in vascular dementia research

Introduction: Traditional approaches to clinical research have, as yet, failed to provide effective treatments for vascular dementia (VaD). Novel approaches to collation and synthesis of data may allow for time and cost efficient hypothesis generating and testing. These approaches may have particular utility in helping us understand and treat a complex condition such as VaD. Methods: We present an overview of new uses for existing data to progress VaD research. The overview is the result of consultation with various stakeholders, focused literature review and learning from the group’s experience of successful approaches to data repurposing. In particular, we benefitted from the expert discussion and input of delegates at the 9th International Congress on Vascular Dementia (Ljubljana, 16-18th October 2015). Results: We agreed on key areas that could be of relevance to VaD research: systematic review of existing studies; individual patient level analyses of existing trials and cohorts and linking electronic health record data to other datasets. We illustrated each theme with a case-study of an existing project that has utilised this approach. Conclusions: There are many opportunities for the VaD research community to make better use of existing data. The volume of potentially available data is increasing and the opportunities for using these resources to progress the VaD research agenda are exciting. Of course, these approaches come with inherent limitations and biases, as bigger datasets are not necessarily better datasets and maintaining rigour and critical analysis will be key to optimising data use

Display Enhanced Testing For Concussions And Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Cognitive assessment systems and methods that provide an integrated solution for evaluating the presence or absence of cognitive impairment. The present invention is used to test cognitive functions of an individual including information processing speed, working memory, work list learning and recall, along with variations of these tasks. Immersive and non-immersive systems and methods are disclosed. Testing and results feedback using the present invention may be completed in real time, typically in less than 15 minutes.Emory UniversityGeorgia Tech Research Corporatio

Dementia care in the acute hospital setting: issues and strategies

This report identifies a range of strategies to improve the outcomes for people with dementia. Executive summary: Australia is facing a huge healthcare challenge with an ever increasing demand for appropriate acute care services for people with dementia. Yet, people with dementia still struggle to get the care they need in the acute care setting. People with dementia experience unacceptably worse clinical outcomes, longer lengths of stay as well as a higher likelihood for readmission compared to people without dementia at a high cost to the health care system.1 With good care, the costs of dementia care in hospital may be the same but the outcomes for people with dementia would be improved leading to a more efficient use of health care spending. Alzheimer’s Australia held a Dementia Care in Hospitals Symposium in Sydney on the 29th of April 2014, where the most recent Australian research in dementia care in hospitals was presented and discussed by leading researchers and experts. This included latest findings on current dementia care as well as interventions and strategies to improve the quality of care. This report provides a summary of the issues and strategies that were discussed at this Symposium. To improve outcomes for people with dementia in the acute hospital setting, this report outlines urgent issues that need to be addressed. These include: • Better identification of cognitive impairment in our hospitals • Increased training for all staff including how to communicate with a person with dementia and how to respond to behavioural and psychological symptoms • More extensive and systematic involvement of carers as partners in the health care of people with dementia • Creation of appropriate physical hospital environments to reduce confusion and distress of people with dementia. This report also identifies a range of strategies to improve the outcomes for people with dementia including: 1. Identify and manage dementia at hospital admission and plan for discharge from the outset 2. Involve family carers in the care and support of patients 3. Train staff to better understand dementia and communicate more effectively with people with dementia 4. Use alternatives, such as psychosocial interventions, to the use of antipsychotic medication and sedatives 5. Adapt the hospital physical environment to reduce distractions and help orientate patients with dementia 6. Reduce avoidable hospital admissions. While there are already some successful programs in place that improve acute care for people with dementia, more needs to be done. Sustained commitment and leadership from policy makers, senior management and healthcare professionals is essential if we are to achieve the cultural change that is required to improve the outcomes for people with dementia in the acute hospital setting

Use of nonintrusive sensor-based information and communication technology for real-world evidence for clinical trials in dementia

Cognitive function is an important end point of treatments in dementia clinical trials. Measuring cognitive function by standardized tests, however, is biased toward highly constrained environments (such as hospitals) in selected samples. Patient-powered real-world evidence using information and communication technology devices, including environmental and wearable sensors, may help to overcome these limitations. This position paper describes current and novel information and communication technology devices and algorithms to monitor behavior and function in people with prodromal and manifest stages of dementia continuously, and discusses clinical, technological, ethical, regulatory, and user-centered requirements for collecting real-world evidence in future randomized controlled trials. Challenges of data safety, quality, and privacy and regulatory requirements need to be addressed by future smart sensor technologies. When these requirements are satisfied, these technologies will provide access to truly user relevant outcomes and broader cohorts of participants than currently sampled in clinical trials

A virtual reality game for cognitive impairment screening in the elderly: a user perspective

Today, there are 50 million people who have dementia worldwide, that is a new case every3 seconds and more than 152 million cases expected in 2050. Aging-related morbidity is a real social problem making screening a significant challenge. Early diagnosis and management would improve the quality of life offered to the patient and those around him and reduce the economic and social consequences of dementia. The traditional paper-and-pencil approach does not sufficiently reflect the daily reality of the person and what they can accomplish. So, we designed our own VR environment as a candidate solution to the problem