Graduate Seminar Series: Clinical Stream – Behrad TaghiBeyglou

Graduate Seminar Series: Clinical Stream
Graduate Seminar Series for the Institute of Biomedical Engineering (BME). This day is for clinical stream presenters.
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Presentation Title: Development of accessible digital technologies to improve sleep assessment in people experiencing homelessness
Abstract:
In Toronto, there are 8,700 people experiencing homelessness (PEH) on any given night. It has been shown that PEH are at high risk of chronic disorders, such as diabetes, heart or mental disease, which are common comorbid conditions of sleep apnea. However, there is no study on the prevalence and consequences of sleep apnea in PEH. Due to several barriers to healthcare, such as low trust in care providers and difficulty visiting medical facilities, PEH have limited access to sleep care. Hence, sleep apnea remains a potential cause of morbidity and mortality in this population. The goal of this study is to assess the feasibility and potential of digital technologies to provide equitable access to sleep care for adults who live in shelters in Toronto.
In this study, we aim to address the current gap in sleep care to shelter residents through 4 interconnected objectives. First, we will investigate the prevalence of sleep problems among shelter residents. Second, we will develop a smartphone application to estimate the risk of sleep problems using speech and video analyses during wakefulness, to provide a more accessible and accurate tool to screen sleep disorders in PEH. Third, in participants diagnosed with sleep apnea, we will investigate the feasibility of providing patient-centered sleep apnea treatment, including continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) or oral appliances (OA). Fourth, we will investigate the accuracy of a new approach based on snoring sounds analysis to predict the efficiency of OA to treat sleep apnea in PEH, which would improve selection of the optimum treatment option for this population.
By accomplishing the objectives of this study, more information about the sleep disorders in PEH will be gained, and the feasibility of providing sleep apnea treatment in PEH will be investigated. Also, with the help of digital technologies and simple modalities such as snoring sounds, the diagnosis and treatment of sleep problems will be more feasible, efficient, and accessible for PEH.
Supervisor Name: Dr. Azadeh Yadollahi
Year of Study: 2
Program of Study: PhD
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89610372821?pwd=azd4SCtYVWtreVovaGNPV1c2NGY2Zz09
Meeting ID: 896 1037 2821
Password: 483329
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