Blog: The Brain Dialogues, filtered by tag: Sydney Memory and Ageing Study

8 Mar 2021

A Tribute to Lilian Keldoulis

HEIDI DOUGLASS | h.douglass@unsw.edu.au CHeBA’s Sydney Memory and Ageing Study is one of the largest continuously running studies of cognitive ageing in Australia with the aims of investigating rates and predictors of healthy cognitive ageing, mild cognitive impairment and dementia in older Australians. An extraordinary 1,037 older adults have generously committed their time to this research for 15 years. One of these incredible people was Mrs Lilian Keldoulis.  Lilian was born in Sydney in 1931, the second daughter to Greek immigrant parents Betty and Mick Adams. Shortly after she was born… Read More
26 Nov 2020

Dr Nicole Kochan | Meet Our Researcher Series

Dr Nicole Kochan is the leader of CHeBA’s Neuropsychology Group and plays a key role in the development and progress of CHeBA’s largest longitudinal cohort study, the Sydney Memory and Ageing Study. Dr Kochan is assessing the validity and efficacy of computer-based neuropsychological tests to detect cognitive decline and potentially provide a more accessible, time efficient and cost-effective means of assessing cognitive function in older adults.   How did you first get into research? I am a trained Clinical Neuropsychologist and was working for several years at the Prince of Wales… Read More
13 Oct 2020

Dr Karen Mather | Meet Our Researcher Series

Dr Karen Mather’s multi-disciplinary research approach to understanding human ageing is dependent upon collaborating not only with CHeBA staff, but also national and international researchers and using publicly available data to provide a more comprehensive examination of the biological processes that underlie the rate at which we age. Dr Mather is enthusiastic about working with CHeBA’s unique studies - in particular the Sydney Centenarian Study - which is the only ongoing exceptional longevity study in Australia.    How did you get into researching the ageing brain? Unlike most people I… Read More
13 Oct 2020

Zara Page | Meet Our Researcher Series

Honours Student at CHeBA, Zara Page, keeps mentally fit through her study of differing languages. So far, she has mastered French along with some Italian and Spanish and hopes to move onto learning Mandarin. In keeping with her passion for languages, Zara is currently conducting research exploring the cultural fairness of cognitive assessments for culturally and linguistically diverse Australians.   How did you get into researching the ageing brain? When I enrolled in my degree, I knew that it was going to be a four-year program with the integrated honours. Ultimately, this was why I chose… Read More
10 Sep 2020

Dr Tharusha Jayasena | Meet Our Researcher Series

Diet is a key modifiable lifestyle factor to achieve healthier cognitive ageing. There is a wealth of evidence indicating the benefits of adopting a Mediterranean diet for improved brain health. Traditional Mediterranean diets have historically contained moderate amounts of fat, much of it from healthful monounsaturated fats (such as extra virgin olive oil and almonds), omega-3 fats (in foods like oily fish/seafood and walnuts), and polyunsaturated fats in other nuts and seeds. Levels of fatty acids found in blood have been reported to be altered in patients with mild cognitive impairment and… Read More
10 Sep 2020

Virginia Winter | Meet Our Researcher Series

With the world’s ageing population increasingly affected by dementia, CHeBA’s Sydney Memory and Ageing Study offers a rich dataset to explore the nature of dementia and predictors of cognitive decline to mediate the impact of the disease. With over 1,000 participants involved in the study, Research Assistant Virginia Winter can attest to how fascinating and valuable CHeBA’s study participants are. She notes that the generous ongoing donation of their time to research, to support future generations, is inspiring.   How did you get into researching the ageing brain? While completing my… Read More
19 Jun 2020

Russell Chander | Meet Our Researcher Series

There is a large body of evidence to suggest that our ability to socialise and maintain positive relationships throughout the lifespan is affected by, and can have an effect on, ageing. Becoming part of an international collaborative effort to better understand the impact of social skills in later life on cognitive decline and dementia is what motivates Russell Chander; PhD student at CHeBA.   How did you get into researching the ageing brain? I became aware of a Research Assistant job through a friend from university that was working at a Neurology clinic. This would be the first job I… Read More
19 Jun 2020

Dr Adam Bentvelzen | Meet Our Researcher Series

The context of healthcare has certainly shifted in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and there is now a huge demand for flexibility when it comes to accessing practitioners and treatment. Dr Adam Bentvelzen is pioneering the way for alternative avenues of accessibility to healthcare services, particularly phone-based cognitive screening. He has been investigating this as a means of assessing patients with possible dementia who are geographically isolated or physically limited. This method has been successfully implemented for over ten years with participants in CHeBA’s Sydney Memory and Ageing… Read More
20 May 2020

Dr Katya Numbers | Meet Our Researcher Series

Changing the stereotypical narratives of ageing throughout the lifespan is what motivates Dr Katya Numbers, Coordinator of CHeBA’s Sydney Memory and Ageing Study (MAS). Though we cannot expect an entirely positive experience of ageing, the key is to hold more realistic views so that we can welcome and embrace growing older. Much of Dr Numbers’ work examines the discrepancy between subjective impressions of cognitive decline and objective measures of cognitive performance in older adults.   How did you get into researching the ageing brain? It has been somewhat of a long and strange… Read More
6 Aug 2019

Subjective Cognitive Complaints and Dementia

HEIDI DOUGLASS | h.douglass@unsw.edu.au Study Co-Ordinator of CHeBA’s Sydney Memory & Ageing Study, Dr Katya Numbers, was invited to present on participants’ subjective experience of cognitive decline at the 4th Annual Australia Dementia Forum 2019 Conference (ADF) in Hobart in June. The Sydney Memory and Ageing Study began in 2005 to examine clinical characteristics and prevalence of mild cognitive impairment and to determine the rate of change of cognitive function over time. Since its inception, the study has included over 1,000 older adult Sydney residents making it one of the… Read More