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Smartphone-based detection of subtle memory decline in prodromal Alzheimer’s disease

Polk, Sarah E. ; Clark, Lindsay R. ; Basche, Kristin ; Kleineidam, Luca ; Glanz, Wenzel ; Butryn, Michaela ; Perneczky, Robert ; Buerger, Katharina ; Fliessbach, Klaus and Laske, Christoph , et al. (2026) In npj Digital Medicine 9(1).
Abstract

The slow progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) poses a challenge for the quantification of early disease-driven cognitive decline. Here, we show that frequently administered remote and unsupervised digital cognitive assessments can detect differences in cognitive decline within 30 weeks in early AD. The sample comprised 202 individuals (52–85 years old) recruited from longitudinal observational studies, who were cognitively unimpaired (CU, n = 152) or had a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n = 50). Participants self-administered remote tasks testing memory precision for objects and scenes, associative memory, and familiarity-dependent memory. The MCI group showed greater decline than the CU group in the... (More)

The slow progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) poses a challenge for the quantification of early disease-driven cognitive decline. Here, we show that frequently administered remote and unsupervised digital cognitive assessments can detect differences in cognitive decline within 30 weeks in early AD. The sample comprised 202 individuals (52–85 years old) recruited from longitudinal observational studies, who were cognitively unimpaired (CU, n = 152) or had a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n = 50). Participants self-administered remote tasks testing memory precision for objects and scenes, associative memory, and familiarity-dependent memory. The MCI group showed greater decline than the CU group in the familiarity-dependent task, while stratifying the MCI group by beta-amyloid (Aβ) status (n = 21 Aβ−; n = 24 Aβ+) revealed greater change in memory precision for objects and familiarity-dependent memory in the MCI Aβ+ group. A 30-week change in the remote familiarity-dependent task was correlated with a multi-year change in annual in-person neuropsychological assessments. In conclusion, frequent remote cognitive testing is a promising tool to feasibly capture and monitor subtle and short-term cognitive decline.

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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
npj Digital Medicine
volume
9
issue
1
article number
402
publisher
Nature Publishing Group
external identifiers
  • scopus:105041620297
  • pmid:42270927
ISSN
2398-6352
DOI
10.1038/s41746-026-02731-1
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2026.
id
4c7bff1a-5377-44a6-8e3d-3f5b991207bd
date added to LUP
2026-07-23 10:54:24
date last changed
2026-09-17 14:55:25
@article{4c7bff1a-5377-44a6-8e3d-3f5b991207bd,
  abstract     = {{<p>The slow progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) poses a challenge for the quantification of early disease-driven cognitive decline. Here, we show that frequently administered remote and unsupervised digital cognitive assessments can detect differences in cognitive decline within 30 weeks in early AD. The sample comprised 202 individuals (52–85 years old) recruited from longitudinal observational studies, who were cognitively unimpaired (CU, n = 152) or had a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n = 50). Participants self-administered remote tasks testing memory precision for objects and scenes, associative memory, and familiarity-dependent memory. The MCI group showed greater decline than the CU group in the familiarity-dependent task, while stratifying the MCI group by beta-amyloid (Aβ) status (n = 21 Aβ−; n = 24 Aβ+) revealed greater change in memory precision for objects and familiarity-dependent memory in the MCI Aβ+ group. A 30-week change in the remote familiarity-dependent task was correlated with a multi-year change in annual in-person neuropsychological assessments. In conclusion, frequent remote cognitive testing is a promising tool to feasibly capture and monitor subtle and short-term cognitive decline.</p>}},
  author       = {{Polk, Sarah E. and Clark, Lindsay R. and Basche, Kristin and Kleineidam, Luca and Glanz, Wenzel and Butryn, Michaela and Perneczky, Robert and Buerger, Katharina and Fliessbach, Klaus and Laske, Christoph and Spottke, Annika and Schneider, Anja and Wiltfang, Jens and Teipel, Stefan and Bartels, Claudia and Rostamzadeh, Ayda and Janowitz, Daniel and Rauchmann, Boris Stephan and Kilimann, Ingo and Sodenkamp, Sebastian and Coenjaerts, Marie and Brosseron, Frederic and Wagner, Michael and Frommann, Ingo and Stark, Melina and Schmid, Matthias and Schott, Björn H. and Johnson, Sterling C. and Jessen, Frank and Düzel, Emrah and Berron, David}},
  issn         = {{2398-6352}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{Nature Publishing Group}},
  series       = {{npj Digital Medicine}},
  title        = {{Smartphone-based detection of subtle memory decline in prodromal Alzheimer’s disease}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-02731-1}},
  doi          = {{10.1038/s41746-026-02731-1}},
  volume       = {{9}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}