Authors:
Paolo Lorenzi
1
;
Rosario Rao
1
;
Antonio Suppa
2
;
Ardian Kita
1
;
Riccardo Parisi
1
;
Giulio Romano
1
;
Alfredo Berardelli
2
and
Fernanda Irrera
1
Affiliations:
1
Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
;
2
Sapienza University of Rome and IRCCS Neuromed, Italy
Keyword(s):
Biosensors, Wearable Wireless Inertial Sensors, Electronic-Health, Long-Time Home Monitoring, Parkinson’s Disease.
Related
Ontology
Subjects/Areas/Topics:
Biomedical Engineering
;
Biomedical Instruments and Devices
;
Biomedical Sensors
;
Devices
;
Hardware
;
Health Monitoring Devices
;
Human-Computer Interaction
;
MEMS
;
Physiological Computing Systems
;
Sensor Networks
;
Wireless Systems
Abstract:
It is proposed an electronic system for the long-time monitoring of specific motor symptoms in patients
affected by Parkinson’s Disease while being at home and making their usual daily activity. The system is
made of a network of non-invasive wireless inertial sensors fixed on the patient body. The muscles activity
is contemporarily analysed through the integration of a circuit for the surface electromyography. Postprocessing
algorithms quantify movements in terms of amplitude and power spectrum. Data are
electronically elaborated and wireless transmitted to a receiver in the patient home, to be accessed remotely
by doctors. The challenge is the automatic distinction between specific parkinsonian symptoms including
resting tremor and freezing of gait and patient’s voluntary movements made in daily life. To the aim, the
contemporarily analysis of muscle activity becomes necessary in specific situations, as in the case of
freezing of gait, where accelerometers signals may be misleading
. Goal of this research is the
comprehension of all the possible environmental and individual factors which favor worsening of gait
disorders during the patient daily life and the customization of the drug therapy, aiming to preventing
catastrophic events such as falls. Results shown here refer to upper limb tremor and freezing of gait.
(More)