- A recent study explored the use of wrist-worn accelerometers to detect Parkinson’s disease before clinical diagnosis.
- The researchers found that a decrease in movement speed could be observed several years before a person is diagnosed with Parkinson’s.
- The accelerometer data outperformed other models based on medical symptoms, genetics, lifestyle, or blood biochemistry data and could potentially be incorporated into clinical practice in the future.
In Parkinson’s disease, the deterioration of specific brain cells causes problems with movement and other health problems that get worse over time. Unfortunately, there is still no treatment that reverses or stops the disease.
Before someone is diagnosed with Parkinson’s, they may have experienced other symptoms for several years (known as prodromal symptoms). Researchers have studied these symptoms, as well as genetics, lifestyle, and blood biochemistry data, to see how well they can predict the development of Parkinson’s. The results are promising, but there is still room for improvement.
Research has also shown that impairment in daily activities and signs of slowness can appear years before a person is diagnosed with Parkinson’s. This inspired researchers to use wearable digital sensors that monitor walking patterns as a tool for detecting Parkinson’s.
Most smartwatches contain a sensor that measures the acceleration of a moving body, known as an accelerometer. A 2021 study showed that wrist-worn accelerometers can detect Parkinson’s with high accuracy. However, the usefulness of these findings was limited by the fact that the study focused on people already diagnosed with Parkinson’s.
Building on this work, a new study led by researchers…
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