# Compensation Training and Lifestyle Modifications to promote healthy aging in persons at risk for Alzheimer's disease: a digital application supported intervention

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · 2024 · $400,442

## Abstract

The prevalence of Alzheimer’s Disease and other disorders (ADRDs) represents a public health crisis. In the
absence of effective medical treatment, there is a critical need for behavioral interventions to prevent or delay
symptom onset. Multidomain interventions simultaneously targeting multiple modifiable risks for ADRD have
shown promise. Additional innovative approaches that capitalize on senior-friendly digital applications to
support and strengthen behavior modification and enhance intervention scalability are needed. Training in the
use of compensatory aids (e.g., calendars and note taking systems) can improve daily independence. These
same compensatory tools can be employed to facilitate the adoption of lifestyle changes that support brain
health (e.g., exercise, cognitive engagement, stress management) through management of goal-setting,
behavioral monitoring, tracking and feedback. The current project will test a 6-month intervention that
provides training in both compensatory aids and lifestyle modification. A comprehensive suite of digital tools
encapsulated in the Digital Memory Notebook (DMN), an easy to use, interactive application, will be used to
facilitate behavioral change and enhance participant motivation. Further, the DMN allows collection of real-
time data to track intervention adherence. The DMN has been successfully applied to improving compensation
among individuals with mild cognitive impairment. The proposed work capitalizes on a critical window for
building resilience by targeting individuals at risk for ADRD due to a subjective cognitive concern (SCC) but
who remain cognitively normal. We will conduct a randomized controlled trial (RCT) among ethnoracially
diverse older adults with SCC to compare our digital application supported compensation training and lifestyle
modification intervention to an education only control group that will not use the DMN or be provided with
guidance on how to implement the educational material into their daily lives. Specific aims of the project
include: 1) evaluate intervention efficacy on primary outcomes (global cognition and everyday function);
secondary outcomes focus on well-being, cognitive domains (memory and executive function), activities of
daily living (IADLs), physical function, compensation, and health behaviors; 2) evaluate characteristics of
treatment responders; 3) evaluate adherence and identify the effective components of the target intervention
using a mixed-method approach; and 4) design machine learning algorithms that use patterns of change in
real-time DMN data metrics to identify incipient declines in treatment adherence and changes in health status.
The intervention under study is novel because it applies training in compensation to support lifestyle
modifications and everyday functioning using a digital application that also monitors adherence to each
component of the intervention in real-time. The project is expected to expand understanding of factors that
may...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11064481
- **Project number:** 3R01AG066748-04S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS
- **Principal Investigator:** MAUREEN SCHMITTER-EDGECOMBE
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $400,442
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2021-01-15 → 2025-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11064481

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11064481, Compensation Training and Lifestyle Modifications to promote healthy aging in persons at risk for Alzheimer's disease: a digital application supported intervention (3R01AG066748-04S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11064481. Licensed CC0.

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