Daily Diary Smartphone Assessment of Subjective Cognitive Concerns in Motoric Cognitive Risk Syndrome: A Pilot Study

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Neurology
• Digital Health

Background:

• Motoric cognitive risk syndrome (MCR) is a predementia condition diagnosed by slow gait and cognitive concerns.
• Current MCR diagnosis is accessible but can be improved with remote monitoring.
• Smartphone technology offers a potential avenue for convenient, remote MCR assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility of daily smartphone-reported subjective cognitive concerns (SCC) in MCR patients.
• To determine if smartphone SCC can detect clinical status in MCR.
• To compare smartphone SCC with traditional in-clinic SCC measures for detecting clinical status.

Main Methods:

• Participants (N=247) with MCR completed a 14-day smartphone daily diary for SCC.
• In-person assessments included the Cognitive Change Index (CCI) for SCC and Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) for clinical status.
• Linear mixed-effects models analyzed associations between SCC measures and clinical status.

Main Results:

• Smartphone and in-person SCC measures demonstrated high correlation.
• Both smartphone and in-person SCC were significantly associated with clinical status in MCR.
• Linear mixed-effects models indicated similar predictive abilities for both assessment methods.

Conclusions:

• Daily smartphone-based SCC assessment is a viable tool for MCR.
• Remote MCR diagnosis via smartphone has implications for equitable dementia detection.
• This approach can enhance MCR dissemination in remote and underserved populations.