Care Assistant for Family Caregivers of Persons with Dementia During Out of the Home Activities

摘要 预期寿命的增加和人口趋势推动了美国人口数量的快速增长 老年人口。随着美国老年人数量的增加，与老龄化相关的流行也在增加 疾病，包括阿尔茨海默病(AD)和其他相关痴呆(ADRD)。估计有540万人 美国人在2012年患有阿尔茨海默病，预计到2030年，这一数字将翻一番。据估计，其中大部分 患者(70%)住在家里，75%的护理由无偿的非正式照顾者提供 家庭成员、朋友和邻居等个人。疾病的自然发展和它的 繁重的行为会给经常与患者有密切关系的照顾者带来巨大的压力 有耐心的。在痴呆症患者的照顾者中，游荡行为是最容易引发压力的行为之一 症状。漫步是一种常见的症状，它包括各种可能导致 病人迷路或迷失方向，导致病人有重伤或死亡的危险，并有压力 并降低了照顾者的独立性。家庭照顾者往往不能把病人单独留在家里，而且 相反，他们必须带着他们去大型和复杂的室内环境，这对 一个阿尔茨海默病患者四处游荡。Koronis Biomedical Technologies将开发一种跟踪解决方案，将带来和平 在固定和移动情况下向照顾者发出提醒，提醒照顾者注意流浪行为和 使他们能够迅速找到他们所爱的人。它将由一个以地理围栏为特色的监测系统组成 以及室内和室外使用的无线系绳模式。将评估拟议系统的效果。 由家庭照顾者通过试点临床研究以及工程评估进行。

Abstract Increases in life expectancy together with demographic trends have fueled a rapid increase in America’s elderly population. As the number of older Americans has grown, so has the prevalence of aging-associated diseases, including Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and other related dementias (ADRD). An estimated 5.4 Million Americans had AD in 2012, and that number is expected to double by 2030. It is estimated that most of these patients (70%) live at home where they receive 75% of their care from informal caregivers who are unpaid individuals such as family members, friends, and neighbors. The natural progression of the disease and its burdensome behaviors cause significant stress for caregivers who frequently have close relationships to the patient. Among caregivers of dementia patients, wandering behavior is one of the most stress-provoking symptoms. Wandering is a common symptom that encompasses various walking behaviors that can result in the patient becoming lost or disoriented leading to the risk of serious injury or death for the patient and stress and reduced independence for the caregiver. Family caregivers often cannot leave patients home alone, and instead must bring them on errands to large and complex indoor environments which present additional risk for an AD patient to wander. Koronis Biomedical Technologies will develop a tracking solution that will give peace of mind to caregivers in both stationary and mobile scenarios, alerting the caregiver to wandering behavior and allowing them to quickly locate their loved one. It will consist of a monitoring system that features geo-fencing and wireless tether modes for both indoor and outdoor use. Efficacy of the proposed system will be assessed by family caregivers through a pilot clinical study, as well as through engineering evaluations.