Identification of Motor Symptoms Related to Parkinson's Disease Using Motion Tracking Sensors at Home
Identification of Motor Symptoms Related to Parkinson's Disease Using Motion Tracking Sensors at Home
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic and progressive neurological movement disorder, meaning
 that symptoms continue and worsen over time. Nearly 10 million people worldwide are living
 with Parkinson's disease. Finding cost-effective non-invasive monitoring techniques for
 detecting motor symptoms caused by Parkinson's disease are potentially of significant value
 for improving care. Of the PD symptoms, the motor symptoms are the most common and detectable
 signs that can be assessed unobtrusively for both diagnosis and for evaluating the
 effectiveness of the treatments.

 The goal of our study is to find methods for identifying and classifying the motor symptoms
 caused by Parkinson's disease. Focus of the study is on long-term motion tracking
 measurements conducted at home during normal everyday life. Both accelerometers connected to
 arm and leg and mobile phone inbuilt sensors carried in the belt are utilized in the study.
 The research has two main objectives / hypotheses:

 1. Can the motor symptoms related to different levels of Parkinson's disease be identified
 using motion tracking sensors? The first objective includes extracting and screening the
 motion differences of patients in early stages of the diseases in comparison with the
 patients in developed stages (patients having hypokinesia, dyskinesia and state changes)
 of the diseases and their differences with healthy control elderly adults using advanced
 signal and data analytics. Data from questionnaires and walking test conducted in the
 hospital environment are utilized as comparison points. Goal is to test the hypothesis
 that the amount of motor symptoms can be detected and the three groups can be reliably
 separated using sensor data.

 2. Can the time when the Parkinson medicine is taken be detected from the movement signals?

 A sample of 50 volunteer PD patients with early stage of the disease (no dyskinesia and state
 changes), plus 50 volunteer PD patients in the later stage of the disease (having dyskinesia
 and state changes), plus 50 volunteers who do not have Parkinson's disease will be recruited
 for the research.

 Study starts with a telephone screening and visit to the hospital. Background characteristics
 and stage of the Parkinson's disease is evaluated in the hospital using a UPDRS
 questionnaires (Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale; Finnish version) and a standardized
 20-step walking test. Before the walking test, accelerometer sensors are attached to the
 shank and on the nondominant wrist. In addition, the participant wears a smart mobile phone
 with embedded accelerometer and gyroscope sensors. Based on the questionnaires and walking
 test study physiotherapist classifies the participant into one of the three study groups.

 The major part of the study involves a 3-day motion screening in a free-living setting in
 which the subjects are wearing the abovementioned sensors for as long duration as they
 comfortably can and are willing. This 3-day study starts immediately after completion of the
 20-step walking test in the hospital. During the 3-day study, subjects are free to live their
 lives without any additional tests. Subjects mark down the time when they take their
 Parkinson medication.
Inclusion Criteria:

 (A) participants must be 30 years of age or older. (B) (for the Parkinson groups) diagnosed
 with PD (ICD-10 code G20) by a physician (neurologist or physician specializing in
 neurology). (C) They should be able to walk at least 20 steps unassisted (subjects are
 allowed to get help from assistive devices but not from other persons).

 Exclusion Criteria:

 (A) The subjects must not be receiving any deep brain stimulation (DBS) treatment while
 they are participating, but intraduodenal administration of levodopa (Duodopa®) or
 intradermal administration of apomorphine (Apogo® or Dacepton®) is accepted. (B) .Other
 extrapyramidal syndromes such as MSA (multiple system atrophy), PSP (progressive
 supranuclear palsy), CBD (corticobasal degeneration), LBD (Lewy body dementia) or dopamine
 antagonist drug (such as antipsychotic drug, metoclopramide) induced Parkinsonism will be
 excluded.