An Extended Follow-up Of Stroke Patients For Cognitive Impairment And Neuropsychiatric Disorders: Sydney Stroke Study
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$321,800.00
Summary
Vascular Dementia (VaD) is the second most common cause of dementia after Alzheimer's disease. In fact, it may be a preventable cause of dementia. Yet it has been relatively neglected by researchers until the last decade, which has seen an upsurge of interest in this disorder. There is no consensus on the criteria for dementia. The profile of early cognitive impairment due to vascular factors is still poorly understood, and the longitudinal course of VaD as defined by modern criteria has not bee ....Vascular Dementia (VaD) is the second most common cause of dementia after Alzheimer's disease. In fact, it may be a preventable cause of dementia. Yet it has been relatively neglected by researchers until the last decade, which has seen an upsurge of interest in this disorder. There is no consensus on the criteria for dementia. The profile of early cognitive impairment due to vascular factors is still poorly understood, and the longitudinal course of VaD as defined by modern criteria has not been studied. There have been few studies of the progressive changes in MRI in patients with cerebrovascular disease. The overlap of VaD and Alzheimer's disease (AD) remains a problem for taxonomists and clinicians. One approach to the study of VaD is to examine a high risk group of subjects longitudinally to determine the early features, the risk factors and progressive changes. With this in mind, we began studying a cohort of stroke patients who are at high risk of VaD, in 1997-1999, and are following them longitudinally. The follow-up is now in its third year, and three neuropsychological assessments and two MRI-MRS scans have been performed. We propose to extend the follow-up to 5 years, with repeat neuropsychiatric, neuropsychological and MRI-MRS investigations, and wherever possible to necropsy, to determine the nature of vascular pathology that underlies cognitive impairment. Our cohort of stroke patients is arguably the most comprehensively assessed such cohorts internationally, and presents an excellent opportunity for a long-term follow-up study.Read moreRead less
Improving Pain And Movement Outcomes In Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$431,000.00
Summary
People fear getting painful knee osteoarthritis (OA) more than any other disease – it is seen as progressive and incurable. It often stops people from moving and staying healthy, resulting in an enormous burden on sufferers and the health care system. This program of research aims to understand what brain & nervous system processes might underlie these pain and movement problems and whether new brain-targeting treatment helps. This will allow us to better match treatment to what patients need.
Fall Prevention And Physical Activity Promotion For Older Adults: Cluster Trial Of Effectiveness And Cost-effectiveness
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,291,950.00
Summary
This cluster randomised controlled trial will establish the impact on physical activity and falls of an intervention program that targets both physical activity and falls using assessment, advice and health coaching. The trial will involve 60 established groups of older people, recruited from local chapters of community organisations including Probus, the Older Women’s Network, registered clubs and church groups (estimated average group size of 10; total n = 600).
The Get Healthy Coaching Service To Reduce The Burden Of Low Back Pain: Effectiveness, Cost Effectiveness, And Scalability
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,108,389.00
Summary
Many improve after discharge from treatment for low back pain (LBP), however some experience worsening symptoms and seek costly additional health care. Get Healthy Service® is a free phone-based health coaching service that supports people to remain physically active, however there is no co-ordinated referral pathway to the service. We will test the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and scalability of a discharge support system linking chronic LBP patients to the Get Healthy Service®.
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.
Scalability Of The Transform-Us! Program To Promote Children's Physical Activity And Reduce Prolonged Sitting In Victorian Primary Schools
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$549,823.00
Summary
Transform-Us! is an innovative primary school program that has been found to substantially increase children’s physical activity levels, reduce sitting time and benefit health. With simple changes to the school and classroom environments and teaching practices (eg, standing lessons) we will work with partners in the education and health systems to translate this program across Victorian primary schools to determine the real-world implementation and impact of this program over 5 years.
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.
Improving Weight Loss By Intermittent Use Of Very Low Energy Diet: The TANGO Diet Trial (Temporary Phases Of Accelerated Weight Loss For Noticeably Greater Outcomes)
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$660,736.00
Summary
Very low energy diet (VLED) is being increasingly used for the treatment of obesity, but the resultant weight loss is usually transient, partly because it induces powerful adaptive responses that inhibit weight loss and promote regain. We have shown that 'taking a break from dieting' for 2 weeks reduces these adaptive responses. In this project we will thus test whether weight loss outcomes with VLED can be improved via intermittent use, where periods on the VLED are alternated with 'breaks'.