Research Overview

My research revolves around leveraging wearable device data to understand how objectively measured sleep and physical activity influence healthy aging. I am also interested in how data from wearable tech can be used to develop machine learning tools for personal health monitoring. My research primarily concerns older adults.

Publications

  • Sakal C, Chen T, Xu W, Zhang W, Yang Y, Li X. Towards proactively improving sleep: machine learning and wearable device data forecast sleep efficiency 4-8 hours before sleep onset. SLEEP (2025). https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsaf113

  • Sakal C, Li T, Li J, Li X. Predicting poor performance on cognitive tests among older adults using wearable device data and machine learning: a feasibility study. npj Aging (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41514-024-00177-x

  • Sakal C, Zhao W, Xu W, Li X. Effects of caffeine on accelerometer measured sleep and physical activity among older adults under free-living conditions. BMC Public Health (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-20115-6

  • Sakal C, Li T, Li J, Yang C, Li X. Association Between Sleep Efficiency Variability and Cognition Among Older Adults: Cross-Sectional Accelerometer Study. JMIR Aging (2024). 10.2196/54353

  • Sakal C, Li T, Li J, Li X. Identifying Predictive Risk Factors for Future Cognitive Impairment Among Chinese Older Adults: Longitudinal Prediction Study. JMIR Aging (2024). 10.2196/53240

  • Sakal C, Li J, Xiang YT, Li X. Development and validation of the Chinese Geriatric Depression Risk calculator (CGD-risk): A screening tool to identify elderly Chinese with depression. Journal of Affective Disorders (2022). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2022.09.034

Conferences and Talks

  • Conference Poster Presentation: Daytime activity attenuates associations between sleep efficiency and mortality among older adults. Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting, 2024. Seattle, USA.

  • Guest Lecture: Polars as an alternative to Pandas for data science. City University of Hong Kong Department of Data Science, 2024. Hong Kong, China

  • Conference Oral Presentation: The International Conference on Aging and Gerontology (ICAG) 2023. Chengdu, China

  • Guest Lecture: An introduction to the Polars library for data science. City University of Hong Kong Department of Data Science, 2023. Hong Kong, China

  • Oral Presentation: Electronic cigarettes as cessation devices for traditional tobacco smokers. Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center Research Presentation Competition for Undergraduate Interns, 2018. Buffalo, New York, USA

  • Oral Presentation: Electronic cigarettes as cessation devices for traditional tobacco smokers. Buffalo Summer Research Conference, 2018. Buffalo, New York, USA

Reviewer Experience

  • Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR)

  • JMIR Public Health and Surveillance

  • JMIR mHealth and uHealth

  • Scientific Reports

  • BMC Public Health

  • BMC Geriatrics

  • Annals of General Psychiatry

  • JMIR Aging

  • JMIR Medical Informatics

  • JMIR Research Protocols

  • JMIR Formative Research

  • Online Journal of Public Health Informatics

  • Aging Clinical and Experimental Research