diagnosis

“Where do you see me in five years?” I had been waiting a long time to ask that question.  At the top hospitals you don’t just get in next week, next month either. And when your day comes, there are lots of people waiting for their turn to ask important questions.  Doctors have little allotted time. My doctor had already turned toward the door.  My most pressing concern was still untreated. “I know you don’t have a crystal ball, but just some sense of what to plan for? My kids haven’t even started school.” To the doctor’s credit, the response was considered. MD: Five years…You’ll ...

This intriguing new device could inspire a new World Parkinson’s Day tradition. In addition to helping diagnose Parkinson’s, the BiRD (Bionics Institute Rigidity Device) offers a therapeutic benefit to patients by bionically assisting them in defiantly raising their middle finger at Parkinson’s Disease. Researchers from Bionics Institute in Melbourne Australia have developed a small, palm-worn device to help diagnose Parkinson’s disease—a condition which is otherwise difficult to identify. The BiRD attaches to the patient's hand via Velcro straps and employs a motor to repeatedly bend the patient’s middle finger for 30 seconds. Integrated sensors measure the force required to bend ...

Could Parkinson's Disease be detected by a selfie? This seems like a rather cruel trick to me, as it can be quite a challenge to take a selfie when you have Parkinson's! Wired Health is an annual conference at The Francis Crick Institute in London which focuses on innovation in healthcare technology. The startup pitch winner at this year's conference was Erin Smith, founder of FacePrint, an automated screening and monitoring tool that claims to be able to detect Parkinson’s Disease using early-stage facial expression indicators. Requiring only a camera equipped smartphone, FacePrint can detect early stages of Parkinson’s Disease ...