How asthma affects walking and the brain in older adults
Official title: The influence of asthma on walking in older adults: brain predictors, medication adherence and asthma control
Funded at Albert Einstein College of Medicine · NIH-11167773 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether asthma, asthma control, and how well people take their inhaled medicines relate to brain changes and walking ability in older adults.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Albert Einstein College of Medicine NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Bronx, United States) |
| Project start | August 15, 2024 |
| Project end | May 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $719,911 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HL169316-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11167773 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Older adults with a physician diagnosis of asthma who can walk safely, are willing to attend visits at the study site, and can undergo brain imaging and wearable monitoring would be ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People without asthma, those who cannot walk safely or perform the dual-task walking test, or those unable to undergo brain imaging are unlikely to benefit from participating.
What this research studies
If you join, you'll do walking tests where you walk while doing a simple thinking task so researchers can see how walking changes under mental load. You'll have brain imaging (including measures of gray matter, cortical thickness, and white matter integrity) and short repeated measurement sessions using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to monitor brain activity during walking. The team will track your use of controller asthma medicines and measure asthma symptoms and control with questionnaires and adherence monitoring. The researchers will combine these brain and behavioral measures to identify modifiable factors that might explain mobility problems in older adults with asthma.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to ways—like improving medication adherence or targeting specific brain pathways—to help older adults with asthma keep walking better and avoid disability.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have linked asthma to mobility problems and have used dual-task walking and fNIRS in aging, but combining detailed brain structure measures, fNIRS, and medication adherence in older adults with asthma is a novel approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Bronx, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Holtzer, Roee — Albert Einstein College of Medicine
- Study coordinator: Holtzer, Roee
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Adaptive mHealth Support to Help Teens with Asthma Stick to Their Inhalers
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Asthma and walking in older adults: brain signals, medicine use, and control
This grant studies how asthma affects how older adults walk, looking at brain factors and how well they take their inhalers to understand mobility and health.
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Asthma Link: Partnering pediatric clinics, schools, and families to improve kids' asthma care
A program that teams pediatric offices, schools, and families to help children with asthma take their daily controller medication at school and improve health outcomes.
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This program connects pediatric clinics, schools, and families so children with poorly controlled asthma can get their daily preventive medicine at school.
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Improving asthma medication adherence in children through school supervision
This study is testing a new program called Asthma Link to help kids with asthma by making sure they get their medication at school, with support from nurses, families, and doctors, so they can breathe easier and feel better.
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Improving asthma treatment adherence in young people using telehealth.
This study is looking to help young people aged 14 to 30 with asthma stick to their medication by using video calls and handy tools to track their inhaler use, making it easier and more personal for them to manage their health over a year.
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.