The Canadian Therapeutic Platform Trial for Multidomain Interventions to Prevent Dementia – CAN-THUMBS UP (or CTU) is a group of over 100 Canadian researchers within the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging focused on addressing dementia prevention.

The CTU platform was initiated in 2019 and is part of the World Wide FINGERS (WW-FINGERS) prevention initiative.

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Brain Health PRO at the forefront of CTU

BHPro is an innovative online program designed to help reduce the risk of dementia by providing individuals with the tools and knowledge needed to make positive lifestyle changes. The original program consists of 181 chapters within 8 modules that are progressively delivered over 45 weeks and is available online in English and French. The program was developed as a collaborative effort by investigators with recognized expertise in the program’s content areas, along with input from older-adult citizen advisors.

BHPro is organized into the following 8 content modules: 1) general information on cognition, dementia, genetic risk and healthy lifestyle, 2) physical activity, 3) cognitive engagement, 4) diet, 5) sleep, 6) social and psychological health, 7) vascular health, 8) vision and hearing. Content format includes visual and auditory text, pictures, animations, quizzes, questionnaires, and interactive exercises. A personalized profile is developed for each participant based on their responses to lifestyle questionnaires at intervals throughout the program and is provided back in a personalized profile display.

Starting in 2019, we established Brain Health PRO (BHPro), as described above, and carried out two fully remote research projects with the program: a pilot study with 20 participants in 3 provinces, followed by a large follow-up study with 350 participants from across Canada. Work was also done to assess the barriers and facilitators of implementing BHPro within community organizations and to assess BHPro for use/adaptation in Indigenous communities.

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SYNERGIC studies

The SYNERGIC studies (SYNchronizing Exercises, Remedies in GaIt and Cognition) are included under the CTU Umbrella.

The SYNERGIC approach is designed to evaluate the effect of aerobic and progressive resistance training exercises, isolated or combined with cognitive training and vitamin D supplementation, in older adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI).

The SYNERGIC study started in 2016 and future adaptations were incorporated into the CTU platform when it was established in 2019. The SYNERGIC @ HOME study, a 16-week interventional study providing at-home physical exercise guidance and cognitive training delivered online, has been completed.

Current and upcoming studies and initiatives

Phase III (2024-2029) of CCNA is now underway with several studies featuring BHPro which have begun or are slated to kick off over the next year including:

  • The SYNERGIC 2 study

  • A Canada-wide study to prepare for the implementation of BHPro

  • A Canada-wide risk factor reduction study

  • A study at the Kimel Centre in Toronto comparing the online-only BHPro program to an in-person lifestyle programming with the online BHPro program

  • A sleep study featuring the educational sleep component of BHPro in addition to the use of CPAP

  • Continued work on the adaptation of BHPro for Indigenous Communities

The next four years will also see the design of several variations of BHPro being developed, including a 6-month version, a general library, and further development of gamification and engagement features. Modular functionality is also being incorporated to allow collaborators/researchers to use relevant components of BHPro to accommodate their needs and research questions. The program is undergoing updates to improve stability to accommodate new collaborations and an increasing number of participants and users.

Potential participants

For more details and to sign up to be contacted about future CTU research studies, please visit our website and click on “Get Involved” and then on “Participate in Research”.

Researchers

If you are interested in learning more about data already collected using Brain Health PRO, or collaborating on a future project once the modular version of Brain Health PRO is available, please visit our website and click on “Get Involved” and then on “Collaborate”.

CAN-THUMBS UP publications

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Get the latest news

Keep up to date with the latest research developments at CCNA. Our “News” section provides information on studies, new developments and key findings in brain health research.