A Preliminary Comparison between Traditional and Gamified Leg Agility Assessment in Parkinsonian Subjects

Abstract

Parkinson's disease (PD) severity is assessed through a set of standardised tasks defined by clinical scales such as the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS). In particular, Leg Agility is a well-established test among the motor tasks included in UPDRS, which consists in repeated cycles of knee lifting and lowering, while sitting on a chair. Leg Agility objective evaluation through optical devices is often investigated for telemedicine applications. Moreover, remote rehabilitation for PD subjects through virtual exergaming is becoming a popular approach thanks to its versatility, increased user engagement and the possibility of coupling it with remote monitoring tools. This work investigates if lower-limb exergaming may also be exploited for assessment purposes similar to traditional evaluation. In particular, if there exists a statistical difference between the kinematic description of Leg Agility versus the one of a Bouncing Ball exergame, as provided by an optical (RGB-D) acquisition system suitable for remote monitoring. Preliminary results obtained by the comparison of the two types of assessment in a small group of parkinsonian subjects are presented and discussed.