ASL Alzheimer’s Screening Lab

I started by researching current Alzheimer’s screening and diagnostic tools. This led me to find multiple research papers identifying the gap in care for deaf patients. I learned that many deaf patients do not feel confident in receiving quality care via sign language. I also found that sign language-based screening tools are just starting to be developed, with initiatives like DeSign. This was concerning because difficulties with hearing can be correlated with an increased likelihood of developing dementia or other memory-related issues. The sources I reviewed are linked below.

I wanted to build an app that would allow patients who cannot hear (or who have difficulty hearing) to use adapted standardized dementia and Alzheimer’s screening tools. I decided to build a 4-part test within the app.

The 1st test is very commonly used; it requires patients to memorize a 4-digit number (and later recall it at the end of the exam).

The 2nd test uses black outlined images and requires patients to identify the object; I used AI-generated black silhouette images. I decided to use images that are not only clear visually, but that also use a clear sign in ASL to decrease false positives in the screening test.

The 3rd test has participants identify colors, and the 4th test requires patients to listen to a short story and recall details (i.e., Sally lives in Los Angeles, and she is married with three kids. She works as a lawyer. Where does Sally live?).

I built this app with the help of Google AI Studio, and I tested the ASL recognition myself and with the help of my friends and family. There are still some errors with the app accurately detecting the correct sign, especially when two hands are involved. I’m working on improving this error. I learned a lot about the varying tests used by the medical community to diagnose Alzheimer’s, and how difficult it is to adapt these validated screening tools for the ASL community.

The sources I refer to above are linked here: Flower, Isabelle, et al. "Dementia and the Deaf Community: Prevalence, Assessment and Management in People with Hearing Loss since Childhood." Aging & Mental Health, vol. 29, no. 5, 2025, pp. 757-766. PubMed, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39578948/.

Angelidou, Ioanna Antigoni, et al. "Measuring Dementia Knowledge and Attitudes among the German Deaf Community: Adaptation and Validation of the Knowledge Assessment Scale, the Dementia Attitude Scale, and the Confidence in Dementia Scale in German Sign Language." Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 108, no. 4, 2025, pp. 1894–1915, https://doi.org/10.1177/13872877251390842.

DE-SIGN: Raising Awareness for Dementia in Deaf Older Adults in Europe. De-Sign Project, 2025, https://de-sign-project.eu/index.php/en/.