Training Challenges for Effectively Implementing a Technology Clinical Trial: A Snapshot From PRISM 2.0

Technology interventions can only be adequately assessed for efficacy if participants are adequately trained to use the technology. Only then can an evaluation be made about whether the technology intervention affects the outcome of interest. In the PRISM study, our goal was to teach inexperienced older adults to use either a tablet computer (control) or the PRISM 2.0 system. In this presentation we will discuss the training processes we used for both groups (e.g., segmenting sessions, providing homework, observations), to enable us to evaluate the relative benefits of PRISM for social connectedness. We will describe the training challenges and the need for assessors to be able to troubleshoot technology issues. We will evaluate individual differences in training success and drop-outs to provide insights for other technology intervention studies. Understanding these individual differences can provide guidance for the deployment of new technologies that may benefit health, social interaction, or cognitive engagement.

Technology to Support Social, Health, and Well-Being Outcomes Among Older Adults

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, information and communication technologies (ICTs) are primarily how many people communicate, socialize, and receive healthcare. In a recent Pew report, experts in the role of technology in society believe that post-COVID-19 pandemic, society will continue to be far more technology-driven than pre-pandemic. That is, technology will play an even greater role in our lives in the “new normal.” However, compared to younger adults, many older adults are less likely to adopt the technologies needed to perform these everyday tasks. Differences in technology proficiency, acceptance, and adoption between groups is often referred to as the “digital divide,” and older adults are more likely to be on the disadvantaged side of this digital divide. This session explores the potential of technology to support social, health, and wellbeing outcomes among older adults, and the challenges involved. This session will start with a talk by A. Lothary on the success and challenges of using a simple video chat platform to address loneliness and social isolation. S. Shende will present a video-technology intervention for older adults with and without cognitive impairment, and how this intervention was designed to facilitate engagement. This will be followed by a presentation by X. Lin on the relationship between social media usage and well-being across the lifespan, and mediators of this relationship. The session will conclude with a presentation by W. Qin on predictors of older adults’ use of telehealth technology to support health and wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Not out-of-reach: Engaging the older old isolated African Americans with and without MCI

The Internet-Based Conversational Engagement Clinical Trial (I-CONECT, ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02871921) is a multi-center randomized, 12-month efficacy study. There is converging evidence that social isolation is a risk factor of cognitive decline and dementia. We hypothesized that increasing social interaction in older adults with normal cognition or mild cognitive impairment (MCI) could improve or sustain cognitive function through internet-based conversational engagement. African Americans (AA) are at higher risk for developing dementia but their participation in clinical trials is low. Objectives: (1) discuss the effective outreach process to recruit urban AA older old adults (mean targeted age of 80+); (2) describe how we retained participants in a yearlong study using technology-based interventions. The most successful outreach and recruitment sources were the voter registration mass mailings and the Healthier Black Elders Research Center. Successful recruitment methods included: hiring diverse staff, compensating participants’ time, and adjusting research protocols for opting out of MRIs and genetic saliva samples. Technology intervention strategies included: providing user-friendly Chromebooks and free internet connections, simple instructions with pictures, vision and hearing correction, and in-home training with technology support backup. During the pandemic, we could assists participants in learning to use the laptop remotely. Over 12,000 subjects were contacted, which led to 39 randomized participants. Our retention rate thus far is over 75%. This demonstrates that AA older adults are reachable, willing to participate in research and able to use communication technology with appropriate supports for long-term sustainable interaction that may improve cognition and health equity.

Family Caregiving Disrupted by COVID-19: Overcoming Challenges Through Resilience and Flexibility

The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have been global and pervasive – yet only partially understood. Older adults and their family caregivers have experienced profound and unprecedented challenges as a result of COVID-19. This symposium features research on these disruptions and the creative adaptations undertaken in response. Four presentations present a variety of geographic regions, caregiving settings, and research focal points. Avidor and Ayalon present findings from interviews with family caregivers of residents in long-term care, highlighting the issues faced as a result of dramatic shifts in policy and procedures in support of pandemic infection control. Gum and colleagues focused on how service access has changed for community-dwelling older adults and their families during the pandemic, and how agencies may best leverage the flexibility of caregivers to adapt service provision. Boucher et al. compare the challenges faced by family caregivers during COVID-19 with those faced during a natural disaster, and highlight unique differences in service access for caregivers of military veterans. Finally, Ko and co-authors share their experience with the implementation of a technology intervention to reduce caregiver stress as part of a research trial, and how the protocol adjustments necessitated by COVID-19 revealed the unique potential of such technologies to support caregivers under isolated conditions. The presenters will focus on themes of resilience and lessons learned for health care systems, service agencies, and society to best support family caregivers in challenging circumstances moving forward.

Low intensity pulsed ultrasound information technology intervention in diagnosis and prediction of Muscle Atrophy

Objective: To discuss the effects and function of LIPUS on muscle atrophy (MA), analysis from various aspects through the study of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) information technology intervention (ITI) in diagnosis and the prediction of muscle atrophy.. Method: In this study conducted in our university, 74 healthy female SD rats aged three months, weighing 100-200g were selected. All rats were placed in sterile cages from June 2020 to September 2020. They were divided into three groups. In the OVO group and OVE group, the mice are treated with LIPUS, Finally, the changes of body weight, grasping power, biochemical indexes and glycogen content of gastrocnemius muscle were analyzed and recorded to explore the effect and value of LIPUS ITI combined with intermittent weight-bearing exercise in the treatment of MA Results: After weight-bearing running, the body weight of model (OVO) group, exercise (OVE) group and NC group had significant statistical significance (P<0.01). It was found that the weight of OVE group was much more as compared to OVO group. There was significant difference in body weight between OVO group and NC group (P<0.05). After LIPUS treatment, it was found that the weight of OVO group, OVE group, LIPUS group and OVE +LIPUS group increased. Compared with the NC group, there was significant statistical difference (P<0.01). Conclusion: Low intensity pulsed ultrasound ITI has a good effect on improving MA, so as to effectively improve the weight of gastrocnemius muscle. The combined application of the two is better for the improvement of muscular atrophy. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.6-WIT.4839 How to cite this:Sun Z. Low intensity pulsed ultrasound information technology intervention in diagnosis and prediction of Muscle Atrophy. Pak J Med Sci. 2021;37(6):1569-1573. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.6-WIT.4839 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Effect of Mobile Health Technology on Weight Control in Adolescents and Preteens: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Childhood obesity is a crucial public health concern. In recent years, numerous studies have employed mobile health technology applications for weight control in children but obtaining varying effects. We conducted a meta-analysis to discuss the effectiveness of mobile health technology in reducing the body mass index (BMI) of obese children. The standardized mean difference (SMD) in BMI between the intervention and control groups was employed to measure the effect of mobile health technology intervention on weight control. The Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Version 3 software was employed for meta-analysis, and the results are presented in a forest plot. This study included nine randomized control trials, which featured a total of 1,202 participants. The meta-analysis revealed that mobile health technology intervention did not have a significant weight loss effect on subjects with obesity. However, by using ethnicity as a moderating variable for subgroup analysis, we discovered that the BMI of ethnic Chinese groups who received mobile health technology intervention was significantly lower than that of the control group. This effect was not significant in the non-ethnic Chinese subgroup. Therefore, the use of mobile health technology intervention for weight control in ethnic Chinese children resulted in significantly lower BMI in these children; however, the use of mobile health technology intervention for weight control is unsuitable for non-ethnic Chinese children.