Meaningful Osteoarthritis Digital Endpoints (MODES)
Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a major source of chronic pain and mobility limitations in middle-aged and older adults. Currently, there are no effective therapies that provide sustained and safe improvements in pain and mobility for people with knee OA. A key challenge has been the limitations of existing endpoints that fail to capture the lived experience of individuals with knee OA. In this National Institutes of Health – Helping to End Addiction Long-term® (NIH-HEAL) funded project, we are developing novel digital endpoints integrating patient-reported outcomes and passive biosensing for a more meaningful and responsive assessment of individuals’ experience with knee OA.
Using a V3+ patient-centered framework, this project includes technology selection, analytical validation, usability testing, and clinical validation in both an observational cohort and a randomized controlled trial. Our eventual goal is to seek regulatory qualification to streamline clinical trials, reduce participant burden, support decentralized research, and accelerate therapeutic development.
Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement
In MODES, we are working closely with people with knee OA to keep their voices central to this initiative. Our patient experts and partners help us ensure that the outcomes of the project are meaningful, relevant, and better aligned with the needs and priorities of the people we aim to support.
Team
Deepak Kumar, PT, PhD
Boston University
Principal Investigator
David T. Felson, MD, MPH
Boston University
Multiple Principal Investigator
S. Reza Jafarzadeh, PhD
University of California at Davis
Multiple Principal Investigator
Douglas Mitchell, MS
Boston University
Lab Manager / Research Assistant
Dilinazi Dina Duolikun, MS
Boston University
Research Assistant
Ting Long, PhD
Boston University
Postdoctoral Fellow
Yiwen Yang, PT, DPT
Boston University
PhD Student
Rhodora Therese Torres, PT, MS
Boston University
PhD Student
Leanne Yinusa-Nyahkoon, ScD, OTR
Boston University
Co-Investigator
Maureen D. Dubreuil, MD
Boston University
Co-Investigator
Tuhina Neogi, MD, PhD
Boston University
Co-Investigator
Robert H. Dworkin, PhD
University of Rochester Medical Center
Co-Investigator
Advisory Board
Our advisory boards include academic scientists, pharmaceutical scientists, and organizations representing patients and caregivers, researchers, and digital health experts.
