Can Gait Analysis with Wearable Devices Predict Parkinson Disease Conversion?

Certain gait impairments quantifiable in the prodromal stage did predict conversion.

Investigators used a wearable gait-measuring device to identify which, if any, gait characteristics may be early diagnostic markers of Parkinson disease (PD) in a study group comprising 696 healthy control participants (mean age, 64) who were longitudinally followed a total of four times at 2-year intervals. Wearing the device, participants walked at different speeds under single-task (walking) and dual-task (walking while performing an unrelated task) conditions. The investigators quantified 14 gait characteristics, and gait at first visit was used to try to predict time to conversion to PD. They also used random effects linear mixed models to further study 16 participants who received a PD diagnosis an average of 4.5 years after the initi…

Reviewing Author

Michael S. Okun, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardParkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America

Speaker’s BureauMedscape/WebMD CME, Movement Disorders Society CME, American Academy of Neurology CME

RoyaltiesBooks4Patients; Demos; Cambridge; Taylor and Francis; Robert Rose; Public Affairs

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health; Parkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America; University of Florida Foundation

Editorial BoardsTremor and Other Hyperkinetic Movements; JAMA Neurology

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesParkinson’s Foundation (Medical Advisor)