Expanding dementia research and care in French‑speaking Sub‑Saharan Africa
Building Unique Infrastructure for Large-scale Dementia research in French-Speaking Africa (BUILD-FSA) Project
This project will create local networks and tools to better understand and support people with Alzheimer's and related dementias in French‑speaking Sub‑Saharan Africa.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Texas Hlth Science Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Antonio, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11267228 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you or a family member has dementia in French‑speaking Sub‑Saharan Africa, this project aims to create the local research and care infrastructure needed to study the disease in your community. It will partner with clinics and researchers across French‑speaking countries to collect health information, biological samples, and culturally adapted cognitive and behavioral measures. The team will train local health workers, translate and validate tools for local languages and cultures, and set up databases and labs to store and analyze samples. Over time these efforts should improve diagnosis, risk prediction, and enable future prevention or treatment studies that include people from your region.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are people living with Alzheimer's disease or related dementias and their caregivers who live in French‑speaking countries of Sub‑Saharan Africa and can attend participating clinics or community sites.
Not a fit: People who live outside French‑speaking Sub‑Saharan Africa or who cannot access participating sites are unlikely to see direct benefits from this specific project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to earlier and more accurate diagnosis, culturally appropriate care, and inclusion of French‑speaking African populations in future treatments and trials.
How similar studies have performed: Other dementia cohort and capacity‑building projects in Africa and worldwide have improved diagnosis and research participation, but comprehensive efforts focused on French‑speaking Sub‑Saharan Africa are relatively limited and this work is partly novel.
Where this research is happening
San Antonio, United States
- University of Texas Hlth Science Center — San Antonio, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Fongang, Bernard — University of Texas Hlth Science Center
- Study coordinator: Fongang, Bernard
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.