Table 3 Research scenarios

Ideas from the researchers’ meeting were used to generate a series of hypothetical, but plausible, scenarios where dementia research might use connected health technology. These were used in patient and public workshops to provide context to the use of wearable devices in dementia research and to prompt further discussion. Scenarios included observational and interventional research designs. Below is an example of an observational research scenario that was adapted for use in different groups.

Example scenario: The cohort study.

“Participants taking part in a birth cohort study (a long-term study where people are tracked throughout their lives) are asked to take part in a spin-off study to see if staying physically active has any impact on their mental abilities and likelihood of developing dementia.

Throughout their lives, participants have already completed questionnaires about their lifestyle habits and have submitted biological data (e.g. blood tests, saliva) to the study. Details about their health conditions and care have also been collected from their medical records, with their permission. For this study, they are asked to wear an activity tracker for one month every year to measure their usual steps, distance and heart rate. The data generated from the trackers are then matched with participants’ other data from the study and their medical records to see if there is any association between levels of physical activity and changes in mental abilities, such as memory, reasoning, language and attention.”