BY Megan McRainey
A device developed by Georgia Tech and Emory University will allow doctors to test their patients for mild cognitive impairment, often the earliest stage of Alzheimer's disease.
Patients could take a brief, inexpensive test that could be administered as part of a yearly exam in a doctor's office. The device is expected to be commercialized later this year.
Current tests capable of detecting early Alzheimer's typically are taken with a pen and paper or at a computer terminal and last about an hour and a half. They must be given by a trained technician in a quiet environment, because any distractions can influence the patient's score and reduce the test's effectiveness. Because of their length and expense, the tests are not used as regular screening tools and typically are given only after there is obvious cognitive impairment such as forgetfulness or unsafe behavior.
"Families usually wait until their mom or dad does something somewhat dangerous, like forgetting to take their medications or getting lost, before bringing them in for testing. At that point, the patient has already lost a significant portion of their cognitive function," said David Wright, who helped develop the device.
Wright is an Emory assistant professor of emergency medicine and co-director of the Emory Emergency Medicine Research Center. "With this device, we might be able to pick up impairment well before those serious symptoms occur and start patients on medications that could delay those symptoms," he said.
The Georgia Tech and Emory device, called DETECT, gives individuals a roughly 10-minute test designed to gauge reaction time and memory, functions that, when impaired, are associated with the earliest stages of Alzheimer's disease.
"We really envision this to be part of the normal preventative care a patient receives from a general practitioner," said Michelle LaPlaca, one of the creators of the device and an associate professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory.
The DETECT system includes an LCD display in a visor with an onboard dedicated computer, noise reduction headphones and an input device (controller). The display projects the visual aspect of the test and the headphones provide the verbal instructions.
The portable test runs patients through a battery of visual and auditory stimuli such as pictures and words that assess cognitive abilities relative to age, gauging reaction time and memory capabilities. Its software can track cognitive capabilities — and decline — year to year during annual appointments.
DETECT's creators have formed a company, called Zenda Technologies, to commercialize the device. Georgia Tech and Emory researchers are exploring other types of cognitive impairment such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder that could be picked up by DETECT. A version of the system designed to detect mild concussions on the sidelines of a football game, during other high-impact sports or on a battlefield is still being tested.
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