Glossary
Longitudinal data
Repeated measurements of the same individuals over time, as opposed to a single snapshot.
Longitudinal data records the same variables for the same people at multiple points — assessment scores every six months, gait measures every visit, medication changes as they happen. It is the only way to observe change directly: cross-sectional data (one measurement per person) can show that older patients score lower, but not whether a given patient is declining.
Longitudinal data is harder to collect well. Measurements must be consistent across visits and sites, timing must be recorded accurately, and missing visits must be handled honestly. In practice, the quality of a neuroanalytics program is decided by the quality of its longitudinal capture.
Why it matters to our work
Our workflow layer exists partly to make longitudinal capture routine: when reassessments are tracked automatically, the data needed for progression analytics accumulates as a by-product of good care.