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Motor neuron disease (MND) Research

Technology in trials

Clinical

Harnessing technology to improve delivery of care and clinical trials in MND

Professor Chris McDermott, University of Sheffield

£50,000 | December 2019 - October 2026

Summary: Monitoring disease in people living with MND can be challenging, often requiring patients to attend clinics which becomes more difficult as their disease progresses, and tests provide only a snapshot of function at one point in time. At-home or “remote” monitoring techniques are being explored to allow people to test function in the comfort of their own homes, and to enable measurements outside of clinic visits to be measured over time, to help track disease progression.

This study assesses attitudes towards and the use of remote monitoring techniques in the delivery of care and clinical trials for people living with MND. Professor McDermott and his team will assess whether remote monitors of both breathing function and day-to-day activity enable respiratory or mobility problems to be picked up earlier and more conveniently.

Why this research is important: Identifying the barriers to adoption of remote monitoring in MND will enable healthcare professionals and researchers to optimise and implement the most appropriate interventions that will improve use of technology in monitoring disease. It could also improve data collection in clinical trials to ensure the most reliable data about effects of new interventions are available.

The first objective of this project, to understand patient perspectives on digital healthcare technology, was published in the Journal of Neurology, in 2022.