Motor-ACT: Motor aspects and activities in relation to cognitive decline and brain pathologies

Early detection of those at risk of cognitive decline/dementia is a global goal. Brain pathologies occur decades before dementia but require invasive technology to detect.

Decreased gait speed is considered an early sign of cognitive decline, but other gait variables or motor aspects (e.g., balance and turning) may provide greater diagnostic and/or prognostic value.

We will pinpoint motor assessments of importance for early detection to be implemented in the chain of care, so the person gets earlier access to advanced evaluations, support, and rehabilitation.The overarching purpose of this ongoing project (VR2021-00905) is to improve early detection of people at risk of cognitive decline/dementia.

We will determine the diagnostic and prognostic value of motor aspects and dual tasking, including their associations with early brain pathologies that relate to dementia.We will monitor three cohorts: 1) people with subjective cognitive decline or mild cognitive impairment with an increased risk of progressing to dementia, 2) cognitively and neurologically healthy older people (control group, and for early detection of incident cases), and 3) people at risk of developing Lewy Body (LB) diseases such as LB dementia (Cohort 3 is new).Longitudinal assessments include motor aspects, dual tasking, cognitive functioning, biomarkers (cerebrospinal fluid and plasma), and brain imaging.

All baseline assessments will be completed in 2025, and most follow-ups in 2028.