scholarly journals Clinical Relevance of Standardized Mobile Gait Tests. Reliability Analysis Between Gait Recordings at Hospital and Home in Parkinson’s Disease: A Pilot Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 1763-1773
Author(s):  
Heiko Gaßner ◽  
Philipp Sanders ◽  
Alisa Dietrich ◽  
Franz Marxreiter ◽  
Bjoern M. Eskofier ◽  
...  

Background: Gait impairments in Parkinson’s disease (PD) are quantified using inertial sensors under standardized test settings in the hospital. Recent studies focused on the assessment of free-living gait in PD. However, the clinical relevance of standardized gait tests recorded at the patient’s home is unclear. Objective: To evaluate the reliability of supervised, standardized sensor-based gait outcomes at home compared to the hospital. Methods: Patients with PD (n = 20) were rated by a trained investigator using the Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS-III). Gait tests included a standardized 4×10 m walk test and the Timed Up and Go Test (TUG). Tests were performed in the hospital (HOSPITAL) and at patients’ home (HOME), and controlled for investigator, time of the day, and medication. Statistics included reliability analysis using Intra-Class correlations and Bland-Altman plots. Results: UPDRS-III and TUG were comparable between HOSPITAL and HOME. PD patients’ gait at HOME was slower (gait velocity Δ= –0.07±0.11 m/s, –6.1%), strides were shorter (stride length Δ= –9.2±9.4 cm; –7.3%), and shuffling of gait was more present (maximum toe-clearance Δ= –0.7±2.5 cm; –8.8%). Particularly, narrow walkways (<85 cm) resulted in a significant reduction of gait velocity at home. Reliability analysis (HOSPITAL vs. HOME) revealed excellent ICC coefficients for UPDRS-III (0.950, p < 0.000) and gait parameters (e.g., stride length: 0.898, p < 0.000; gait velocity: 0.914, p < 0.000; stance time: 0.922, p < 0.000; stride time: 0.907, p < 0.000). Conclusion: This pilot study underlined the clinical relevance of gait parameters by showing excellent reliability for supervised, standardized gait tests at HOSPITAL and HOME, even though gait parameters were different between test conditions.

Author(s):  
P. Y. Diachenko ◽  
I. I. Leta ◽  
G. S. Moskovko

Objective — to identify the most significant markers of gait that indicate a decrease in cognitive function based on investigation of the corelation of cognitive impairment, gait parameters and atrophy of brain structures in groups of patients with Parkinson’s disease and the «normally aging population». Methods and subjects. 66 subjects were examined: 30 patients with Parkinson’s disease (mean age 54.9 ± 5.9, 50 % men) and 33 without neurological pathology (mean age 52.7 ± 7.6, 66 % men). All of them underwent neurological examination, assessment of temporal and spatial gait parameters using the GaitRite system, grading of brain atrophy using a comprehensive visual rating scale of MRI scans and assessment of cognitive status using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale. Results. Cognitive performance was significantly lower in the subgroup of patients with Parkinson’s disease compared to the subgroup of «normally aging population». The gait profile of patients with Parkinson’s disease significantly differed from the gait profile of individuals from the «normal aging» subgroup by slower gait velocity, shorter step length and stride length for both limbs. The gait parameters, which showed a strong correlation with cognitive tests, differed in the subgroups, but gait velocity, stride length and step length for both extremities were common among them. These common gait parameters showed a strong direct correlation with brain atrophy in the subgroup of patients with Parkinson’s disease, but only velocity correlated with atrophy in the subgroup of «normal aging» among all of them. It was determined by the method of multiple regression analysis that it was precisely the atrophy of the brain that turned out to be the most influential factor in the decrease in cognitive function in the general group and subgroups. Conclusions. The gait profile in Parkinson’s disease subgroup is characterized by lower velocity, shorter step length, stride length for both limbs and significantly differs from the subgroup of «normal aging». These changes are a consequence of the influence of the disease on the motor sphere. Velocity showed a strong correlation in both subgroups not only with cognitive abilities, but also with cerebral atrophy. This confirms the hypothesis about the possibility of using gait velocity as a universal sensitive marker for current and longitudinal assessment of cognitive function, especially in clinical practice.  


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Massimiliano Pau ◽  
Federica Corona ◽  
Roberta Pili ◽  
Carlo Casula ◽  
Marco Guicciardi ◽  
...  

This study aimed to investigate possible differences in spatio-temporal gait parameters of people with Parkinson’s Disease (pwPD) when they are tested either in laboratory using 3D Gait Analysis or in a clinical setting using wearable accelerometers. The main spatio-temporal gait parameters (speed, cadence, stride length, stance, swing and double support duration) of 31 pwPD were acquired: i) using a wearable accelerometer in a clinical setting while wearing shoes (ISS); ii) same as condition 1, but barefoot (ISB); iii) using an optoelectronic system (OES) undressed and barefoot. While no significant differences were found for cadence, stance, swing and double support duration, the experimental setting affected speed and stride length that decreased (by 17% and 12% respectively, P<0.005) when passing from the clinical (ISS) to the laboratory (OES) setting. These results suggest that gait assessment should be always performed in the same conditions to avoid errors, which may lead to inaccurate patient’s evaluations.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Péter Kincses ◽  
Norbert Kovács ◽  
Kázmér Karádi ◽  
Ádám Feldmann ◽  
Krisztina Dorn ◽  
...  

Introduction.In the genesis of Parkinson’s disease (PD) clinical phenomenology the exact nature of the association between bradykinesia and affective variables is unclear. In the present study, we analyzed the gait characteristics and level of depression in PD and healthy volunteers.Methods.Patients with PD (n=48) and healthy controls (n=52) were recruited for the present study. Walking speed, stride length, and cadence were compared between groups while participants completed a goal-directed locomotion task under visually controlled (VC) and visually noncontrolled conditions (VnC).Results.Significantly higher depression scores were found in PD comparing to healthy control groups. In PD, depression was associated with gait components in the VC wherein the place of the target was visible. In contrast, in healthy subjects the depression was associated with gait components in VnC wherein the location and image of the target were memorized and recalled. In patients with PD and depression, the visually deprived multitask augments the rate of cadence and diminishes stride length, while velocity remains relatively unchanged. The depression associated with gait characteristics as a comorbid affective factor in PD, and that impairs the coherence of gait pattern.Conclusion.The relationship between depression and gait parameters appears to indicate that PD not only is a neurological disease but also incorporates affective disturbances that associate with the regulation of gait characteristics.


Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1697
Author(s):  
Sangmin Park ◽  
Aeyung Kim ◽  
Gunhyuk Park ◽  
Ojin Kwon ◽  
Sangsoo Park ◽  
...  

In this preliminary pilot study, we investigated the specific genes implicated in the therapeutic response to acupuncture in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Transcriptome alterations following acupuncture in blood samples collected during our previous clinical trial were analyzed along with the clinical data of six patients with PD, of which a representative patient was selected for transcriptomic analysis following acupuncture. We also examined the changes in the expression of PD biomarker genes known to be dysregulated in both the brain and blood of patients with PD. We validated these gene expression changes using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) in the blood of the remaining five patients with PD who received acupuncture treatment. Following acupuncture treatment, the transcriptomic alterations in the representative patient were similar to those induced by dopaminergic therapy. Among the PD biomarkers, ankyrin repeat domain 22 (ANKRD22), upregulated following dopaminergic therapy, and synapsin 1 (SYN1), a common gene marker for synaptic dysfunction in PD, were upregulated following acupuncture. These alterations correlated with changes in gait parameters in patients with PD. Our data suggest ANKRD22 and SYN1 as potential biomarkers to predict/monitor therapeutic responses to acupuncture in patients with PD, especially in those with gait disturbance. Further research is needed to confirm these findings in a large sample of patients with PD.


2017 ◽  
Vol 58 ◽  
pp. 495-497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen Lirani-Silva ◽  
Rodrigo Vitório ◽  
Fabio Augusto Barbieri ◽  
Diego Orcioli-Silva ◽  
Lucas Simieli ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 1657-1673
Author(s):  
Aliyah Glover ◽  
Lakshmi Pillai ◽  
Shannon Doerhoff ◽  
Tuhin Virmani

Background: Freezing of gait (FOG) is a debilitating feature of Parkinson’s disease (PD) for which treatments are limited. To develop neuroprotective strategies, determining whether disease progression is different in phenotypic variants of PD is essential. Objective: To determine if freezers have a faster decline in spatiotemporal gait parameters. Methods: Subjects were enrolled in a longitudinal study and assessed every 3– 6 months. Continuous gait in the levodopa ON-state was collected using a gait mat (Protokinetics). The slope of change/year in spatiotemporal gait parameters was calculated. Results: 26 freezers, 31 non-freezers, and 25 controls completed an average of 6 visits over 28 months. Freezers had a faster decline in mean stride-length, stride-velocity, swing-%, single-support-%, and variability in single-support-% compared to non-freezers (p < 0.05). Gait decline was not correlated with initial levodopa dose, duration of levodopa therapy, change in levodopa dose or change in Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores (p > 0.25). Gait progression parameters were required to obtain 95% accuracy in categorizing freezers and non-freezers groups in a forward step-wise binary regression model. Change in mean stride-length, mean stride-width, and swing-% variability along with initial foot-length variability, mean swing-% and apathy scores were significant variables in the model. Conclusion: Freezers had a faster temporal decline in objectively quantified gait, and inclusion of longitudinal gait changes in a binary regression model greatly increased categorization accuracy. Levodopa dosing, cognitive decline and disease severity were not significant in our model. Early detection of this differential decline may help define freezing prone groups for testing putative treatments.


Author(s):  
Emahnuel Troisi Lopez ◽  
Roberta Minino ◽  
Pierpaolo Sorrentino ◽  
Rosaria Rucco ◽  
Anna Carotenuto ◽  
...  

AbstractBACKGROUNDParkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by motor impairment, affecting quality of life and increasing fall risk, due to ineffective postural control. To this day, the diagnosis remains based on clinical approach. Similarly, motor evaluation is based on heterogeneous, operator-dependent observational criteria. A synthetic, replicable index to quantify motor impairment is still lacking. In this paper, we build upon the idea that the trunk is crucial in balance control. Hence, we have designed a new measure of postural stability which assesses the trunk displacement in relation to the center of mass, that we named trunk displacement index (TDI).METHODSTwenty-three PD patients and twenty-three healthy controls underwent clinical (UPDRS-III) and motor examination (3D gait analysis). The TDI was extracted from kinematic measurements using a stereophotogrammetric system. A correlation analysis was performed to assess the relationship of TDI with typical gait parameters, to verify its biomechanical value, and UPDRS-III, to observe its clinical relevance. Finally, its sensitivity was measured, comparing pre- and post-L-DOPA subclinical intake.RESULTSThe TDI showed significant correlations with many gait parameters, including both velocity and stability characteristics of gait, and with the UPDRS-III. Finally, the TDI resulted capable in discriminating between off and on state in PD, whereas typical gait parameters failed two show any difference between those two conditions.CONCLUSIONSOur results suggest that the TDI may be considered a highly sensitive biomechanical index, reflecting the overall motor condition in PD, and provided of clinical relevance due to the correlation with the clinical evaluation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 81 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 120-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kunio Toda ◽  
Mutsumi Iijima ◽  
Kazuo Kitagawa

Objective: We quantitatively evaluated the gait of Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients over a 10-m course during normal walking and during dual-task walking while performing a calculation task, and clarified which parts of white matter lesions (WML) influence gait in PD patients. Methods: Gait parameters, including walking speed, gait cycle, stride length, and left-right instability, were measured in 64 PD patients and 20 controls who walked 10 m with normal gait and as they were performing a calculation task. WML on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of PD patients were scored according to Scheltens’ criteria, and associations with gait parameters were investigated. Results: Compared to controls, the PD group showed decreased walking speed and narrowed stride (p < 0.05), and the stride length and step time coefficient of variation changed significantly during the calculation task (p < 0.001). Frontal lobe functions correlated positively with walking speed and stride during the calculation task in patients with PD (p < 0.05). The total score for periventricular hyperintensity (PVH) on MRI correlated with walking speed and stride (p < 0.01). Multiple regression analysis revealed significant correlations between walking speed and frontal cap of PVH, and between stride and occipital cap (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Gait of PD patients deteriorated not only due to motor dysfunction but also due to mental burden in association with frontal lobe function and periventricular lesions of cerebral white matter.


Author(s):  
Victoria Sidoroff ◽  
Cecilia Raccagni ◽  
Christine Kaindlstorfer ◽  
Sabine Eschlboeck ◽  
Alessandra Fanciulli ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Gait impairment is a pivotal feature of parkinsonian syndromes and increased gait variability is associated with postural instability and a higher risk of falls. Objectives We compared gait variability at different walking velocities between and within groups of patients with Parkinson-variant multiple system atrophy, idiopathic Parkinson’s disease, and a control group of older adults. Methods Gait metrics were recorded in 11 multiple system atrophy, 12 Parkinson’s disease patients, and 18 controls using sensor-based gait analysis. Gait variability was analyzed for stride, swing and stance time, stride length and gait velocity. Values were compared between and within the groups at self-paced comfortable, fast and slow walking speed. Results Multiple system atrophy patients displayed higher gait variability except for stride time at all velocities compared with controls, while Parkinson’s patients did not. Compared with Parkinson’s disease, multiple system atrophy patients displayed higher variability of swing time, stride length and gait velocity at comfortable speed and at slow speed for swing and stance time, stride length and gait velocity (all P < 0.05). Stride time variability was significantly higher in slow compared to comfortable walking in patients with multiple system atrophy (P = 0.014). Variability parameters significantly correlated with the postural instability/gait difficulty subscore in both disease groups. Conversely, significant correlations between variability parameters and MDS-UPDRS III score was observed only for multiple system atrophy patients. Conclusion This analysis suggests that gait variability parameters reflect the major axial impairment and postural instability displayed by multiple system atrophy patients compared with Parkinson’s disease patients and controls.


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