
Understanding how our lifestyle behaviours affect dementia
Dr Michael Wheeler aims to understand how different patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour influence known risk factors for dementia.
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Developing and implementing lifestyle-based solutions to prevent and manage chronic conditions.
This domain focuses on the development, implementation, evaluation and translation of lifestyle-based solutions for the prevention and management of chronic conditions. This includes cardiometabolic and musculoskeletal-related conditions, brain, cognitive and mood-related disorders, and cancer.
This domain consists of five research groups:
Researchers in this domain have expertise in:
Dr Michael Wheeler aims to understand how different patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour influence known risk factors for dementia.
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This project is exploring the use of digital voice assistants to support older people with dementia and/or mild cognitive impairment.
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It’s estimated that 511,000 Australians live with heart failure. An innovative project led by Professor Ralph Maddison will help people better manage their condition and improve their quality of life.
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Advances in home-sensing technologies offer new opportunities to support people with heart disease to manage their condition in the comfort of their own home.
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Associate Professor David Scott is exploring exercise interventions to improve the health of older adults, of whom up to 40 per cent are obese and suffering significant disability and poor health.
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IPAN researchers are conducting a world-first trial on the role of telehealth as a new model of personalised healthcare delivery to prevent falls and fractures in older adults.
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Dr Helen Macpherson investigated strategies for protection against the development of dementia in older people.
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Dr Teketo Tegegne is leading a world first study applying machine-learning techniques to existing wearable camera image data to identify patterns of self-management in people with heart failure.
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Cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of death, globally and in Australia. Now, an IPAN researcher is exploring how digital health can change management and prevention of cardiovascular disease.
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Group leader: Professor Ralph Maddison
Group members: Professor David Dunstan, Associate Professor David Scott, Associate Professor Shariful Islam, Dr Paddy Dempsey, Dr Kidane Gebremariam, Dr Paul Jansons, Dr Jakub Mesinovic, Dr Niamh Mundell, Dr Jonathan Rawstorn, Dr Teketo Tegegne, Dr Kim Way, Dr Yuxin Zhang
The Digital health for lifestyle and disease management group focuses on the development and evaluation of effective, scalable solutions for the prevention and management of chronic diseases, including (but not limited to) cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity. Our group has expertise in the development and evaluation of theory and evidence-based technology interventions across a range of settings (homes, hospitals and communities) and populations (adults and clinical populations).
Our research incorporates the use of mobile devices, wearable sensors, home-sensing, and wearable cameras to measure and influence behavioural and health outcomes. We also have considerable expertise in the design and delivery of pragmatic, randomised controlled trials.
This group covers:
Group leader: Professor Robin Daly
Group members: Professor Judi Porter, Associate Professor Steve Fraser, Associate Professor Nicole Kiss, Associate Professor David Scott, Associate Professor Stuart Warmington, Dr Ana Maria Contardo Ayala, Dr Paddy Dempsey, Dr Jackson Fyfe, Dr Elena George, Dr Ashlee Hendy, Dr Paul Jansons, Dr Jakub Mesinovic, Dr Clint Miller, Dr Niamh Mundell, Dr Lucas Orssatto, Dr Patrick Owen, Dr Jamie Tait
The Musculoskeletal health and mobility group focuses on the integration of exercise and nutritional approaches for the primary and secondary prevention of musculoskeletal-related conditions throughout the life course. Our group has specific expertise in conducting large-scale human clinical intervention trials and translational studies, particularly in the areas of osteoporosis, sarcopenia, falls and fractures, musculoskeletal pain and spinal health. There is also a strong focus on 1) the prevention and management of musculoskeletal-related complications associated with other chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, kidney disease, certain types of cancer and cognitive related disorders and 2) optimising the management of primary musculoskeletal pain and subsequent disability.
In terms of translational activities, our group has experience and expertise in conducting ‘research to practice’ trials and evaluating their effectiveness within the community. Our group actively engages with relevant stakeholders – including medical practitioners, specialists, allied health professionals, hospitals and industry – to inform policy, practice and clinical guidelines.
This group covers:
Group leader: Dr Helen Macpherson
Group members: Professor Robin Daly, Professor David Dunstan, Professor Judi Porter, Associate Professor Megan Teychenne, Associate Professor Susan Torres, Dr Ashlee Hendy, Dr Catherine Milte, Dr Niamh Mundell, Dr Ewa Szymlek-Gay, Dr Jamie Tait, Dr Anne Turner, Dr Michael Wheeler
The Physical activity and nutrition for cognitive and mental health group focuses on informing and developing optimal nutrition and physical activity strategies to optimise mental health and cognitive function across the lifespan. In particular, our group is comprised of multi-disciplinary researchers with expertise ranging from neurophysiology, exercise physiology, cognitive neuroscience, neuroimaging, psychological stress, mental health, behavioural (i.e. physical activity, sedentary behaviour, nutritional) epidemiology. Collectively, we lead research utilising a range of study designs and methods, including the conduct of clinical and translational intervention trials, large-scale epidemiological studies and qualitative research methods.
This group covers:
Group leader: Associate Professor Steve Fraser and Associate Professor Nicole Kiss
Group members: Professor Robin Daly, Professor Ralph Maddison, Professor Judi Porter, Dr Brenton Baguley, Dr Suzanne Dixon-Suen
The Exercise and nutrition for cancer group focuses on exercise and nutrition interventions to optimise musculoskeletal, nutritional, functional and quality of life outcomes for people with cancer. Members of our group have specific expertise in the evaluation of novel models of health care delivery, randomised controlled trials, and exercise and nutrition interventions, particularly in the area of lung, prostate, breast and adolescent and young adult cancers.
Areas of focus include body composition changes and the impact of sarcopenia and bone loss on patient outcomes, recognition and management of cancer malnutrition, and optimised exercise and nutrition interventions that minimise adverse effects of cancer treatment. Our group has a strong national and international network of collaborators and partnerships in clinical health services and academic settings. Members have expertise in translation of research into direct improvements in clinical practice through contribution to national evidence-based clinical guidelines and resources for cancer clinicians.
This group covers:
Group leader: Professor David Dunstan and Dr Sze-Yen Tan
Group members: Professor Robin Daly, Associate Professor Shariful Islam, Associate Professor David Scott, Dr Brenton Baguley, Dr Ana Maria Contardo Ayala, Dr Paddy Dempsey, Dr Elena George, Dr Paul Jansons, Dr Katherine Livingstone, Dr Jakub Mesinovic, Dr Paige van der Pligt, Dr Michael Wheeler
The Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolic Diseases group focuses on dietary and physical activity strategies for the prevention and management of chronic metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. With an emphasis on clinical nutrition and physical activity, this group aims to assess the efficacy and effectiveness of lifestyle interventions as holistic multimodal interventions, which can ultimately be translated into practice, promoting behaviour change and optimising metabolic health outcomes. Our group has expertise in dietary and physical activity assessment, clinical trials, designing and examining the efficacy of various dietary and physical activity interventions, and real-world implementation of these interventions.
This group covers:
Group leader: Associate Professor Shariful Islam
Group members: Professor Ralph Maddison, Dr Elena George, Dr Carley Grimes, Dr Katherine Livingstone, Dr Ewa Szymlek-Gay, Dr Paige van der Pligt
The Global Health group focuses on collaborative trans-national research (particularly Asia-Pacific and Oceania regions) to understand the influence of physical activity and nutrition on major non-communicable diseases and their risk factors, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, hypertension and mental health. Our research uses high-quality information on population health and its determinants to evaluate the performance of health systems over time and develop evidence to tackle challenging these health problems. Our group also conducts applied research to improve healthy lifestyles and assess the effects of interventions on improving health outcomes globally, focusing on Asia-Pacific and Oceania regions. We collaborate with leading global institutes, including the University of Washington, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, World Heart Federation and the World Health Organization. Our group has expertise in epidemiology, health systems, nutrition, medicine, digital health, systematic reviews and meta-analysis, clinical trials and secondary data analysis.
This group covers: