A Clinical Applicable Smartwatch Application for Measuring Hyperkinetic Movement Disorder Severity

Measuring the severity of hyperkinetic movement disorders like tremor and myoclonus is challenging. Although many accelerometers are available to quantify movements, the vast majority lacks real-time analysis and an interface that makes it possible to real-time adjust therapy like deep brain stimulation (DBS). Here, we developed a smartwatch / smartphone application that is capable of real-time analysing movement disorder severity. Movement analysis was realised by integrating acceleration values, to velocity and subsequently to distance. Measured distances were compared with a validated accelerometer already applied for quantifying movement disorders. Further validation was done by quantitative assessment of simulated movement disorders in 10 healthy volunteers. Finally, the approach was tested in two patients treated with DBS to quantify the effect of different DBS settings on myoclonus and tremor severity, respectively. The distance measured with the application had a 96% accuracy. This was non-inferior (p = 0.76) compared to accelerometers already clinically applied. Furthermore, (simulated) movement disorder severity could be classified correctly in 93% of the cases. Finally, the method was capable of distinguishing effective from non-effective DBS parameters in two patients. In summary, with our approach we realised an instantaneous and reliable estimation of the severity of movement disorders which can assist in real time titrating therapy like DBS.