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Review
. 2024 Nov;18(6):1489-1499.
doi: 10.1177/19322968231171399. Epub 2023 Apr 27.

Remote Digital Technologies for the Early Detection and Monitoring of Cognitive Decline in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: Insights From Studies of Neurodegenerative Diseases

Ashley Y DuBord  1   2 , Emily W Paolillo  1 , Adam M Staffaroni  1
Affiliations
Review

Remote Digital Technologies for the Early Detection and Monitoring of Cognitive Decline in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: Insights From Studies of Neurodegenerative Diseases

Ashley Y DuBord et al. J Diabetes Sci Technol. 2024 Nov.

Abstract

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a risk factor for cognitive decline. In neurodegenerative disease research, remote digital cognitive assessments and unobtrusive sensors are gaining traction for their potential to improve early detection and monitoring of cognitive impairment. Given the high prevalence of cognitive impairments in T2D, these digital tools are highly relevant. Further research incorporating remote digital biomarkers of cognition, behavior, and motor functioning may enable comprehensive characterizations of patients with T2D and may ultimately improve clinical care and equitable access to research participation. The aim of this commentary article is to review the feasibility, validity, and limitations of using remote digital cognitive tests and unobtrusive detection methods to identify and monitor cognitive decline in neurodegenerative conditions and apply these insights to patients with T2D.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; cognitive decline; digital biomarkers; health technology; mild cognitive impairment; type 2 diabetes.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Dr AMS is an inventor of a subset of ALLFTD Mobile App cognitive tasks and receives licensing fees. AYD conducts human research at Google, Alphabet Inc., outside the scope of this work. The authors report no other conflicts of interest.

References

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