What is the study about?
This study looks at how playing an exercise video game called ‘Bootle Blast’ can help improve balance in older adults with dementia. Older adults with dementia are more likely to have balance problems, which can result in falls. Exercise can improve balance for people with dementia. Exercise video games that involve moving (similar to the Nintendo Wii) have been used in therapy. However, these systems are not designed for people with different abilities, do not capture the entire body, and cannot track how players move over time. These games also lack aspects seen in mainstream games, like exciting music, competition, a storyline, quality graphics, feedback, and multiplayer modes. Bootle Blast was designed to combine therapy and video games and has been used by children and youth with varied motor abilities, both in clinics and at home. Preliminary research shows that Bootle Blast can keep players engaged and help support physical outcomes. Early tests also suggest that older adults might enjoy it, too.
Eligibility - Who can participate?
Pairs of people with dementia and their caregivers living in the same household.
Participants must:
• Be 18 years of age or older.
• Have reliable internet access at home for the device to connect to.
People with Dementia
• Live in Ontario, Canada (within a two-hour drive from Toronto, Ontario)
• Speak and understand English
• Agree to be video and audio recorded as part of the study
• Be able to stand and walk, with or without an assistive device (e.g., a walker)
• Be able to use both upper limbs to play the games
• Have the capacity to provide independent, informed consent
Caregivers
• Live in Ontario, Canada (within a two-hour drive from Toronto, Ontario)
• Speak and understand English
• Agree to be video and audio recorded as part of the study.
Study Site
Participate from home. The research lab running this study is the DATE Lab at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute (TRI), a part of the University Health Network (Toronto, Canada).
Time requirement
This study will take approximately 3-4 weeks to complete, and will include the following:
• Meet the researchers for 1.5 hours during a home visit so the person with dementia can complete two balance tests and two questionnaires (one for balance/falls and one for memory). Participants will also both complete a demographic survey and be trained to set up Bootle Blast and play the games.
• Play Bootle Blast at home for 2 weeks on days/times that work with your routine schedule (i.e., you will choose the frequency and duration). The game will record all sessions while you play.
• Weekly, audio-recorded check-in phone calls (10 minutes per call).
• Meet the researchers for 30 minutes during a second home visit so the person with dementia can complete two balance tests.
• Be audio recorded during a 30-minute interview at the end of the study about your experiences playing or supporting your family member with the games.
U of T study investigator
Dr. Arlene Astell, arlene.astell@utoronto.ca
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