Cognitive Fatigue and the ManageMyFatigue App

Abstract

Cognitive fatigue is the decrease in alerting and orienting, with an overall drop in executive function and attention on any given task (Holtzer et al. 108). It has been found to affect 73% of individuals with brain injury for an average of five years post-injury. Despite pharmacological treatments, up to 80% of patients consistently exhibit extreme levels of tiredness.10 The use of rehabilitation technology is specifically essential in acting as an assistive prosthetic in fostering increased independence and control over their own lives. The ManageMyFatigue (MMF) App was designed by Michelle Wild to help identify and manage cognitive fatigue and mental exhaustion by providing feedback to the user. We hypothesized that individuals with brain injury can learn how to use and implement the MMF App into everyday life. Eleven subjects with varying degrees of brain injury participated in training and posttest evaluation to determine their ability to successfully use the app, measured by total proficiency. Our results indicate that individuals with brain injury can learn how to implement the MMF app into everyday life. Our hope is that the MMF will not only help manage cognitive fatigue, but increase quality of life by increasing insight and self-awareness.