Can wearables help Parkinson's patients? Verily publishes new data

 It may be soon that wearables can be used for more than just receiving texts or measuring your steps.

Building on previous research showing sensors can be used to monitor symptoms, Verily, Alphabet, Inc.’s research organization, posted a paper detailing a new smartwatch-based virtual exam for patients with Parkinson’s.

The study, which started in 2020 and enrolled 370 participants, examined patients weekly as they performed various motor tasks both in-clinic and remotely. The wearable also allowed users to input when they took their medication.

At week 1, around 80% of patients had completed at least one motor exam. During week 52, 40% did at least one exam.

Researchers were able to develop reliable digital measures for Parkinson’s symptoms like upper-extremity bradykinesia and rest tremors. The study also measured gait impairment, and while researchers found that arm swing acceleration was not the best outcome measure, it did show solid performance, the researchers said.

According to the paper, the results are on par with similar published analyses of wrist-worn sensors, and while this study can demonstrate the ability of a wearable to provide metrics that map the observations of an expert clinician, more studies are necessary to determine their full potential.

“The system allows for an increased frequency of data collection, enabling monthly aggregation of measurements, leading to increased test-retest reliability. In turn, high reliability suggests that these measures have potential as digital biomarkers of progression. Further research is needed to more firmly establish the ability of these and other measures to serve as progression biomarkers,” the paper said.

Alphabet is not the only company looking into using wearables to assist Parkinson’s patients. In 2021, researchers at Silicon Valley giant Apple designed a system that can enable the Apple Watch to detect the motor symptoms that are a major calling card of the disease. The results of their work were posted in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

While tech companies keep up on the monitoring side, pharma is continuing its fight against the disease, which is one of the hardest to treat. In May, AbbVie approached the FDA with a new therapy to potentially treat the disease using prodrugs of two medications commonly used for the condition.

https://endpts.com/can-wearables-help-parkinsons-patients-verily-publishes-new-data-from-virtual-exams/