The current standard of care for the diagnosis and management of movement disorders involves subjective rating scales. White clinicians could employ various instrumental procedures to eliminate the subjectivity, available instrumental methods lack portability and are technically complex. This project will develop and validate a self-contained, intelligent device small enough to be worn on the body to quantify normal and abnormal movement and tremor. The technical aim of the project is to develop a device combining sub-miniature accelerometers, a tiny microcomputer and memory into a package the size of a watch or a piece of jewelry. The size and capability will make it easy to use with children, the aged, physical therapy, sports training and sports medicine, ergonomics and other areas in which movement is a consideration. The device will be totally self-contained and require no technical skill on the part of the clinician. The Phase I clinical goal is to test the reliability and validity of the device by studying approximately 30 patients with tremor and other movement disorders. The long term clinical goal is to apply this technology to larger samples of adults and children with diverse movement disorders and to apply it in non-medical fields.
