Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 24, 2025
Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults
Published on: January 26, 2019
Digital Monitoring of Sleep, Meals, and Physical Activity for Reducing Depression in Older Spousally-Bereaved Adults:
Sarah T Stahl1, Stephen F Smagula1, Mary Amanda Dew1
1Department of Psychiatry (STS, SFS, MAD, RS, CFR), University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.
Objectives:
To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a behavioral intervention and explore its impact on depression symptom burden among older spousally-bereaved adults.
Methods:
Participants were age ≥60 years, bereaved ≤8 months, and at high risk for depression. Participants were randomized to 12 weeks of digital monitoring of sleep, meals, and physical activity; digital monitoring plus health coaching; or enhanced usual care and followed for 9 months for new-episode depression.
Results:
We enrolled 57 participants, 85% of eligible adults and 38% of all adults screened. We observed high levels of adherence in both digital monitoring (90%) and health coaching (92%); 88% of participants were retained. In linear mixed-effects models, depression symptoms significantly decreased, but the interaction between time and intervention was not significant.
Conclusion:
A behavioral intervention that uses both digital monitoring and motivational health coaching is feasible and acceptable to older bereaved adults.
