Assessment of the Kinematic Adaptations in Parkinson's Disease Using the Gait Profile Score: Influences of Trunk Posture, a Pilot Study

Axial postural abnormalities and pain in Parkinson's disease

Axial postural abnormalities and pain are two main determinants of poor quality of life in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Indeed, a detailed characterization of pain and other non-motor symptoms in patients with PAs has not been provided yet. The aim of this study is to assess the phenomenology of pain and other non-motor symptoms in PD patients with Pisa syndrome and camptocormia compared to PD patients without axial postural abnormality. Forty-five PD participants were equally distributed in three groups: patients with Pisa syndrome (PS), patients with Camptocormia (CC), and patients without postural abnormalities (PD). Pain characteristics were assessed by Kings Parkinson's Pain Scale (KPPS), brief pain inventory (BPI), and numeric pain rating scale (NRS). All participants completed clinical assessments by non-motor symptom scale (NMSS), and movement disorder society Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) parts II-III. Patients with and without axial postural abnormalities showed one or more types of pain, being fluctuation, nocturnal, chronic, and musculoskeletal the most frequently reported in Pisa Syndrome and camptocormia. PD group compared with PS and CC groups showed differences in the KPPS, NMSS, BPI pain severity and interference, and NRS total scores. No significant differences were found between PS group compared with CC group with exception of the NMSS total scores. PD patients with Pisa syndrome or camptocormia have a higher burden of musculoskeletal, chronic and fluctuation pain than PD patients without axial postural abnormalities, suggesting different etiologies of pain and possible different treatments.

Feasibility of a Novel Therapist-Assisted Feedback System for Gait Training in Parkinson's Disease

We tested the feasibility of one session of treadmill training using a novel physical therapist assisted system (Mobility Rehab) using wearable sensors on the upper and lower limbs of 10 people with Parkinson's disease (PD). Participants performed a 2-min walk overground before and after 15 min of treadmill training with Mobility Rehab, which included an electronic tablet (to visualize gait metrics) and five Opal sensors placed on both the wrists and feet and on the sternum area to measure gait and provide feedback on six gait metrics (foot-strike angle, trunk coronal range-of-motion (ROM), arm swing ROM, double-support duration, gait-cycle duration, and step asymmetry). The physical therapist used Mobility Rehab to select one or two gait metrics (from the six) to focus on during the treadmill training. Foot-strike angle (effect size (ES) = 0.56, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 0.14 to 0.97), trunk coronal RoM (ES = 1.39, 95% CI = 0.73 to 2.06), and arm swing RoM (ES = 1.64, 95% CI = 0.71 to 2.58) during overground walking showed significant and moderate-to-large ES following treadmill training with Mobility Rehab. Participants perceived moderate (60%) and excellent (30%) effects of Mobility Rehab on their gait. No adverse events were reported. One session of treadmill training with Mobility Rehab is feasible for people with mild-to-moderate PD.

A summary index derived from Kinect to evaluate postural abnormalities severity in Parkinson’s Disease patients

Postural abnormalities are common disabling motor complications affecting patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). We proposed a summary index for postural abnormalities (IPA) based on Kinect depth camera and explored the clinical value of this indicator. Seventy individuals with PD and thirty age-matched healthy controls (HCs) were enrolled. All participants were tested using a Kinect-based system with IPA automatically obtained by algorithms. Significant correlations were detected between IPA and the Movement Disorder Society-Sponsored Revision of the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) total score (rs = 0.369, p = 0.002), MDS-UPDRS-III total score (rs = 0.431, p < 0.001), MDS-UPDRS-III 3.13 score (rs = 0.573, p < 0.001), MDS-UPDRS-III-bradykinesia score (rs = 0.311, p = 0.010), the 39-item Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39) (rs = 0.272, p = 0.0027) and the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) score (rs = −0.350, p = 0.006). The optimal cut-off value of IPA for distinguishing PD from HCs was 12.96 with a sensitivity of 97.14%, specificity of 100.00%, area under the curve (AUC) of 0.999 (0.997–1.002, p < 0.001), and adjusted AUC of 0.998 (0.993–1.000, p < 0.001). The optimal cut-off value of IPA for distinguishing between PD with and without postural abnormalities was 20.14 with a sensitivity, specificity, AUC and adjusted AUC of 77.78%, 73.53%, 0.817 (0.720–0.914, p < 0.001), and 0.783 (0.631–0.900, p < 0.001), respectively. IPA was significantly correlated to the clinical manifestations of PD patients, and could reflect the global severity of postural abnormalities in PD with important value in distinguishing PD from HCs and distinguishing PD with postural abnormalities from those without.