Kaylee Rudd

Kaylee Rudd is a Junior Research Fellow at the Wicking Dementia Research Education Centre, University of Tasmania. Her research focuses on exploring motor biomarkers of the early stages of dementia, with particular emphasis on non-invasive and affordable screening tools to detect people at risk of developing dementia. She works within the ISLAND Project and ISLAND Clinic, which aims to create a one-stop interdisciplinary cognitive clinic model that addresses rural health inequality and reduces diagnosis time.

Dr. Rudd holds a Bachelor of Medical Research (Honors) from the University of Tasmania, completed between February 2021 and November 2021. Prior to her current role, she served as a Research Assistant at the Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre (February 2023 - November 2024), Project Officer at the University of Tasmania (January 2022 - November 2022), and Student Success Leader at the University of Tasmania, Hobart (January 2021 - December 2021).

Her primary research interests center on the intersection of motor function and cognitive decline, specifically investigating how upper limb motor function, gait analysis, and other movement biomarkers can serve as early indicators of dementia. Dr. Rudd's work particularly focuses on developing and validating digital tools, including smartphone applications, for home-based screening of preclinical Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. Her research spans multiple disciplines including neuroscience, geriatrics, cognitive science, and digital health technologies.

Analysis of Dr. Rudd's publication record reveals a strong focus on translating motor biomarker research into practical clinical applications. Her work demonstrates how digital tools measuring hand movement, gait, and other motor functions can detect early cognitive changes before traditional symptoms appear. The progression of her research shows increasing sophistication in combining multiple motor tasks and integrating digital biomarkers with plasma markers to improve diagnostic accuracy across the dementia continuum.

Dr. Rudd has secured funding for significant research projects, most notably 'Exploring clinic manifestations of late-onset Essential Tremor: a pre-cognitive biomarker of dementia?' funded by the Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation ($24,966; January 2023 - September 2025). She actively mentors PhD and Honours students as part of her role at the University of Tasmania (February 2022 - December 2024).

Her scholarly contributions include numerous publications in high-impact journals such as GEROSCIENCE, DEMENTIA AND GERIATRIC COGNITIVE DISORDERS, and BMC NEUROLOGY, with her most recent work published in May 2025. Dr. Rudd has presented her research at major conferences including the Alzheimer's Association International Conference and the Australian Dementia Research Forum.