Tracing early memory concerns and outcomes using health records and AI
Official title: Antecedents and Outcomes of Subjective Cognitive Decline: An Electronic Health Records and Artificial Intelligence Approach
Funded at Brigham and Women's Hospital · NIH-11176369 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are using electronic health records and artificial intelligence to find adults with early memory worries and identify who may later develop dementia.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Brigham and Women's Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2022 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $244,009 |
| NIH project number | 5R00AG075190-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11176369 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults who have reported new or worsening memory concerns to their clinicians but do not yet have a dementia diagnosis, especially older adults seen in participating health systems.
✕Less likely to help
People without records in the participating EHR systems, those already diagnosed with dementia, or those whose memory concerns were never documented are unlikely to be identified or helped by this project.
What this research studies
This project analyzes large-scale electronic health records, including doctors' notes, to find people who reported subjective cognitive decline but do not yet have dementia. Machine learning tools will be used to pull signals from clinical notes and other EHR data to create a pre-dementia cohort. The team will examine social and medical factors linked to progression to dementia to better understand risk. Results aim to improve ways to identify potential trial participants and people who might benefit from earlier care.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help spot people with early memory problems sooner so they can be considered for clinical trials or early interventions.
How similar studies have gone: Prior studies suggest machine learning on clinical notes can flag early cognitive concerns, but using EHRs to predict who will progress to dementia remains relatively new and challenging.
Where this research is happening
-
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wang, Liqin — Brigham and Women's Hospital
- Study coordinator: Wang, Liqin
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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.