« Previous events Today Next events »

Events

Prosem Lecture: Validation of In-Person and Remote Semantic Fluency Assessment and Its Sensitivity to Subtle Cognitive Impairment and Plasma p-tau217 Positivity

Deling He, Ph.D.
62 Goodnight Hall
@ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Learn more about Prosem

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and related dementias (ADRD) are a growing global public health challenge. More than 55 million people worldwide currently live with ADRD, a number projected to nearly triple by 2050. There is a critical need for accessible, low-burden, and sensitive tools that can complement traditional clinical assessments and enable large-scale screening in community settings. Mobile and digital assessments, particularly remote and self-administered tools, are increasingly being explored to meet this need. To advance this effort, our lab developed TalkTracker, a tablet-based application designed to collect speech samples remotely and repeatedly in the home environment. The current study focused on an action semantic fluency task administered weekly over eight weeks. We examined whether language-derived measures from action fluency, including total correct responses, age of acquisition (AoA), and word frequency, were associated with cognitive status and plasma p-tau217 positivity, a hallmark biomarker of AD pathology. We examined these associations both cross-sectionally using linear regression models and longitudinally using linear mixed-effects models, adjusting for age, sex, and education. Additionally, we assessed the test-retest reliability of remotely collected action fluency measures using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and evaluated convergent validity with in-person semantic fluency performance using available animal fluency collected closest in time to the mobile assessment. Pearson correlations, ICCs, and Bland-Altman analyses were conducted. Findings from this study will inform the utility of remotely administered action semantic fluency as a reliable and scalable digital biomarker for cognitive monitoring and the early detection of AD-related cognitive decline.

Deling He, Ph.D.

Prosem Lecture: Beyond Aspiration: Dysphagia Management, Pneumonia Risk, and Multisystemic Consequences in Acute Care in Acute Care

Megan Crawford, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, BCS-S
62 Goodnight Hall
@ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Learn more about Prosem

Dysphagia in acute and critical care is often simplified to a binary problem based on the presence or absence of aspiration. However, clinical outcomes emerge from complex interactions across multiple body systems. This seminar examines swallowing as a whole-body function shaped by neurologic status, cardiac and surgical factors, respiratory reserve, oral health, mobility, nutrition and other systemic influences. Using a case-based approach, the presentation will explore why similar swallowing findings may lead to different outcomes across patients. Current evidence and the presenter's research will be integrated to examine pneumonia risk, common dysphagia management practices and how dysphagia findings should be considered alongside the broader clinical picture. Attendees will leave with a practical framework for balancing swallowing safety and efficiency with pulmonary risk, nutrition and hydration, patient goals, and quality of life in acute care decision-making.

A W crest banner flutters in the wind on Bascom Hill at the University of Wisconsin-Madison during autumn on Oct. 18, 2019. Photo by Jeff Miller /UW-Madison
« Previous events
Next events »