Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42149841›Full record

ArticlePloS one2026

Facilitating the measurement and treatment of Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) and understanding caregiver burden using wearable devices in Rural Taiwan-Protocol for a dyadic feasibility pilot study.

Ta-Wei Guu, Wan-Jing Li, Shih-Hsiung Lee, Chih-Shan Hsu, Chia-Ni Chou, Leon Lack, Wei-Fen Ma

Abstract read
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Article in PloS one, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Ta-Wei GuuDivision of Psychiatry, Departments of Internal Medicine, China Medical University Beigang Hospital, Yunlin, Taiwan.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2621-0781
Wan-Jing LiDepartment of Nursing, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan.
Shih-Hsiung LeeDivision of Psychiatry, Departments of Internal Medicine, China Medical University Beigang Hospital, Yunlin, Taiwan.
Chih-Shan HsuDivision of Neurology, Departments of Internal Medicine, China Medical University Beigang Hospital, Yunlin, Taiwan.
Chia-Ni ChouCommunity Longterm Care Center, China Medical University Beigang Hospital, Yunlin, Taiwan.
Leon LackSchool of Psychology, Flinders University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
Wei-Fen MaSchool of Nursing, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8203-5909

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionAlzheimer's disease (AD) prevalence rises with societal ageing. In clinical care, behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD)-including depression, agitation/aggression, apathy, and sleep disturbance-worsen patients' quality of life and substantially increase caregiver burden, more significantly than the cognitive symptoms. Standard BPSD assessments rely on caregiver-rated questionnaires that are cross-sectional and may be biased when caregivers are themselves older adults. Device-based measures (e.g., research-grade wrist actigraphy) can provide objective longitudinal data and novel features. In parallel, therapeutic wearables may improve sleep and mood in adults, and might improve BPSD if accepted by people living with dementia.

methodsThis dyadic pilot study will recruit 20 participants (n = 10 AD patients; n = 10 caregivers) from outpatient services and affiliated day-care/dementia hubs in rural Taiwan. Participants will wear Geneactiv continuously for 8 weeks and Re-Timer ≥30 min/day for 4 weeks. Device-based data will be processed with GGIR, a well validated R-package designed for processing accelerometer data. Questionnaire assessments include Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Neuropsychiatry Inventory Questionnaire (NPI-Q), Caregiver Burden Inventory (CBI), and a semi-structured interview based on the Taiwanese version of Quebec User Evaluation of Satisfaction with Assistive Technology (T-QUEST) at prespecified timepoints. DISCUSSION: Wearable devices may facilitate the measurement and treatment of specific BPSD, as well as reduce caregiver burden. If proven feasible even in rural Taiwan where both digital and health literacy and resources are limited, this model will inform how device-based dementia care model can be considered and applied in the context of global ageing.

Indexed as

Alzheimer DiseaseCaregiversDementiaWearable Electronic DevicesActigraphyAgedDigital HealthFeasibility StudiesFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPilot ProjectsQuality of LifeRural PopulationSurveys and Questionnaires

Identifiers

PMID42149841
PMCPMC13183198

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.