Wearable wireless inertial sensors for long-time monitoring of specific motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease

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.