Protocol for a pragmatic randomised controlled trial of Body Brain Life-General Practice and a Lifestyle Modification...

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Public Health
• Preventative Medicine

Background:

• Alzheimer's disease and dementia pose significant global health challenges.
• Reducing key risk factors could prevent millions of dementia cases worldwide.
• Subtle cognitive deficits preceding dementia have substantial socioeconomic impact.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a multidomain risk-reduction intervention for dementia in primary care.
• To assess the effectiveness of online/face-to-face (Body Brain Life-General Practice) and lifestyle modification programs.
• To provide evidence for scalable, cost-effective dementia prevention.

Main Methods:

• A pragmatic randomized controlled trial (RCT) involving 240 adults at high risk for dementia.
• Interventions included a 12-week Body Brain Life-General Practice (BBL-GP) program, a 6-week lifestyle modification program (LMP), and an email-only health information program.
• Primary outcome: dementia risk (Australian National University-Alzheimer's Disease Risk Index Short Form); secondary outcomes: cognitive function, physical activity, depression, cost, diet, and sleep quality.

Main Results:

• Data collection is ongoing with baseline and multiple follow-up assessments.
• The study is designed to provide comprehensive data on intervention effectiveness and cost-evaluation.
• Specific results on intervention efficacy are pending completion of the trial.

Conclusions:

• This pragmatic RCT offers a novel approach to dementia risk reduction in primary care.
• Successful interventions could be rapidly disseminated and scaled up at a relatively low cost.
• The findings aim to inform evidence-based strategies for widespread dementia prevention.