Modifying The Trajectory Of Insidious Late Life Cognitive Decline Using Computerised Cognitive Training
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$743,152.00
Summary
Supervised, group-based computerised cognitive training (CCT) is a safe and effective intervention to maintain cognition in healthy older adults. This project will examine the extent to which CCT can attenuate or even reverse the rate of decline in older people with previously documented cognitive decline, as well as strategies to maintain CCT effects in the long term.
The Sexual Health And Attitudes Of Australian Prisoners
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,605,706.00
Summary
The second Sexual Health and Attitudes of Australian Prisoners study will be the largest population-based survey of prisoners’ sexual health, attitudes and behaviour undertaken in Australia. it has been nearly 10 years since the first survey. The 2nd survey will expand survey coverage and examine vulnerable prisoner subgroup, and provide up-to-date evidence essential to sexual and reproductive health policy and practice for this growing and disadvantaged population.
Local Sleep In The Awake Brain: An Underlying Cause Of Neurobehavioural Deficits In Sleep Apnea?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$582,330.00
Summary
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep disorder which significantly impacts daytime functioning leading to excessive sleepiness, and problems with attention and thinking. Currently, the causes for cognitive impairment in OSA (including attentional lapses and performance deficits) are poorly understood. In the awake state, groups of neurons can briefly go “offline” as they do in sleep. These periods of “local sleep” may explain impaired task performance in OSA.
A Scalable Intervention For Increasing Vigorous Physical Activity Among Older Adolescents: The ‘ Burn To Learn ’ Cluster RCT
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$636,912.00
Summary
Physical inactivity has been described as a global pandemic and only 15% of Australian adolescents are sufficiently active. The pressure to perform in major school assessments drives many older adolescents to sacrifice physical activity to maximise academic performance. Our team has designed a time-efficient solution to increase physical activity in senior high school students using high intensity interval training which will be evaluated using a cluster randomised controlled trial.
An MRI Study Of Emotional Processing Deficits In Childhood
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$578,985.00
Summary
The ability to recognise and process emotions in other people is fundamental to healthy social interactions. Conduct disordered children with callous and unemotional traits have difficulty recognizing fearful expressions, possibly due to lack of attention to cues such as facial expressions that healthy people naturally attend to. This study will use neuroimaging to determine if brain activity changes to look more like typically developing children if their gaze is redirected to facial cues of em ....The ability to recognise and process emotions in other people is fundamental to healthy social interactions. Conduct disordered children with callous and unemotional traits have difficulty recognizing fearful expressions, possibly due to lack of attention to cues such as facial expressions that healthy people naturally attend to. This study will use neuroimaging to determine if brain activity changes to look more like typically developing children if their gaze is redirected to facial cues of emotion.Read moreRead less
Rates, Patterns And Determinants Of Alcohol’s Harm To Others: A Cross-national Comparative Study
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$305,856.00
Summary
Alcohol causes harms to drinkers, and others around them, including spouses, children, family, friends, workmates and strangers. Australian and New Zealand work on alcohol’s harm to others is being replicated by the WHO in 7 countries (Chile, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam). We aim to analyse datasets from nine countries and compare the magnitude and patterning of problems across and within cultures – identifying opportunities for reducing harm from others’ drinking.
Sexual And Reproductive Health And Behaviours Of Young Offenders (14-18 Years) In NSW & Qld
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$869,730.00
Summary
Young Indigenous and non-Indigenous offenders in Australia aged 14 and 15 years have never been systematically surveyed regarding their sexual and reproductive health in Australia. Thus we have little information on which to base education and policy initiatives. To address this knowledge gap we will systematically survey young people in contact with the juvenile justice system aged 14-18 years to provide a comprehensive picture of their sexual and reproductive behaviours and needs.
The Genetic And Environmental Determinants Of Amyloid Deposition In Older Individuals: An Amyloid Imaging Study Using The Twin Design
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$643,267.00
Summary
Alzheimer’s disease is characterised by the deposition of amyloid plaques in the brain. We don’t fully understand how amyloid deposition occurs and what contribution is made by genetic and environmental factors. Amyloid deposition in the brain can now be quantified during life using positron emission tomography. In this study, we will examine brain amyloid in twins, which will determine what proportion of the pathology is attributable to environmental factors that may be modifiable.
A Selective Prevention Trial Using Novel Pharmacotherapies In An Older Age Cohort At Risk For Depression
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$975,259.00
Summary
The study will examine whether omega-3 fatty acids or antidepressants prevent the onset of depression in a group of older community participants who have previously been identified as being "at risk" of depression. The study will incorporate sophisticated brain scanning methods, as well as tests of brain functioning to determine acute brain changes, reduction in cognitive decline and prevention of depression over a one-year period.