Can plasma α-Synuclein help us to differentiate parkinson’s disease from essential tremor?

Background: Studies have revealed controversial results regarding the diagnostic accuracy of plasma α-synuclein levels in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). This study was aimed to analyze the diagnostic accuracy of plasma α-synuclein in PD versus healthy controls and patients with essential tremor (ET). Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we included de novo (n = 19) and advanced PD patients [OFF (n = 33), and On (n = 35) states], patients with ET (n = 19), and controls (n = 35). The total plasma α-synuclein levels were determined using an ELISA sandwich method. We performed adjusted multivariate regression analysis to estimate the association of α-synuclein levels with group conditions [controls, ET, and de novo, OFF and ON-PD]. We studied the diagnostic accuracy of plasma α-synuclein using the area under the curve (AUC). Results: The plasma α-synuclein levels were higher in controls compared to PD and ET (p < 0.0001), discriminating de novo PD from controls (AUC = 0.74, 95% CI 0.60–0.89), with a trend towards in advanced PD (OFF state) from ET (AUC = 0.69, 95% CI 0.53–0.84). Conclusions: This is the first study examining and comparing plasma α-synuclein levels in ET vs. PD and controls. Preliminary findings suggest that plasma α-synuclein levels might help to discriminate de novo and advanced PD from controls and ET.Junta de Castilla y León is acknowledged for funding through the Biomedicine open project call (Ref. BIO/BU06/14

Adopting a multidisciplinary telemedicine intervention for fall prevention in Parkinson’s disease. Protocol for a longitudinal, randomized clinical trial

Approximately 40–70% of people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) fall each year, causing decreased activity levels and quality of life. Current fall-prevention strategies include the use of pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies. To increase the accessibility of this vulnerable population, we developed a multidisciplinary telemedicine program using an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) platform. We hypothesized that the risk for falling in PD would decrease among participants receiving a multidisciplinary telemedicine intervention program added to standard office-based neurological care.This work was supported by the project PI19/00670 of the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacio´n y Universidades, Instituto de Salud Carlos II, Spain. The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of NVIDIA Corporation and its donation of the TITAN Xp GPUs used in this research

A Low-Cost System Using a Big-Data Deep-Learning Framework for Assessing Physical Telerehabilitation: A Proof-of-Concept

The consolidation of telerehabilitation for the treatment of many diseases over the last decades is a consequence of its cost-effective results and its ability to offer access to rehabilitation in remote areas. Telerehabilitation operates over a distance, so vulnerable patients are never exposed to unnecessary risks. Despite its low cost, the need for a professional to assess therapeutic exercises and proper corporal movements online should also be mentioned. The focus of this paper is on a telerehabilitation system for patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease in remote villages and other less accessible locations. A full-stack is presented using big data frameworks that facilitate communication between the patient and the occupational therapist, the recording of each session, and real-time skeleton identification using artificial intelligence techniques. Big data technologies are used to process the numerous videos that are generated during the course of treating simultaneous patients. Moreover, the skeleton of each patient can be estimated using deep neural networks for automated evaluation of corporal exercises, which is of immense help to the therapists in charge of the treatment programs.This work was supported by project PI19/00670 of the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spain. The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the NVIDIA Corporation and its donation of the TITAN Xp GPU used in this research. In addition, this work was partially supported by the European Social Fund, as the authors José Miguel Ramírez-Sanz, José Luis Garrido-Labrador, and Alicia Olivares-Gil are the recipients of a pre-doctoral grant (EDU/875/2021) from the Conserjería de Educación de la Junta de Castilla y León

Multicentre, randomised, single-blind, parallel group trial to compare the effectiveness of a Holter for Parkinson's symptoms against other clinical monitoring methods: study protocol

Introduction In recent years, multiple studies have aimed to develop and validate portable technological devices capable of monitoring the motor complications of Parkinson's disease patients (Parkinson's Holter). The effectiveness of these monitoring devices for improving clinical control is not known. Methods and analysis This is a single-blind, cluster-randomised controlled clinical trial. Neurologists from Spanish health centres will be randomly assigned to one of three study arms (1:1:1): (a) therapeutic adjustment using information from a Parkinson?s Holter that will be worn by their patients for 7 days, (b) therapeutic adjustment using information from a diary of motor fluctuations that will be completed by their patients for 7 days and (c) therapeutic adjustment using clinical information collected during consultation. It is expected that 162 consecutive patients will be included over a period of 6 months. The primary outcome is the efficiency of the Parkinson?s Holter compared with traditional clinical practice in terms of Off time reduction with respect to the baseline (recorded through a diary of motor fluctuations, which will be completed by all patients). As secondary outcomes, changes in variables related to other motor complications (dyskinesia and freezing of gait), quality of life, autonomy in activities of daily living, adherence to the monitoring system and number of doctor?patient contacts will be analysed. The noninferiority of the Parkinson's Holter against the diary of motor fluctuations in terms of Off time reduction will be studied as the exploratory objective. Ethics and dissemination approval for this study has been obtained from the Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge Ethics Committee. The results of this study will inform the practical utility of the objective information provided by a Parkinson's Holter and, therefore, the convenience of adopting this technology in clinical practice and in future clinical trials. We expect public dissemination of the results in 2022.Funding This work is supported by AbbVie S.L.U, the Instituto de Salud Carlos III [DTS17/00195] and the European Fund for Regional Development, 'A way to make Europe'

Assistive Devices for Personal Mobility in Parkinson's Disease: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Artículo de revisiónGait abnormalities are a hallmark of Parkinson’s disease and contribute to falling risk. As disease symptoms progress, assistive devices are often prescribed. However, there are no guidelines for choosing appropriate ambulatory devices for gait impairment.This work was supported by the project PI19/00670 of the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spain. The authors declare that there are no additional disclosures to report relevant to this work

Variables psicológicas implicadas en la actitud e iniciativa emprendedora

Identificar variables individuales relacionadas con la iniciativa emprendedora y el fomento de competencias transversales relacionadas con la misma, supone un desafío en la investigación actual sobre emprendimiento. El proyecto titulado Variables psicológicas implicadas en la actitud e iniciativa emprendedora, realizado bajo el programa Innova Docencia promovido por el Vicerrectorado de Calidad de la UCM en la convocatoria 2016-2017, ha tenido por objetivo analizar y evaluar variables psicológicas relacionadas con emprendimiento que presentan una muestra de estudiantes de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid. En dicho estudio han participado 1222 estudiantes de la UCM correspondientes a 27 titulaciones: 14 de Grado, 2 de Dobles Grados, y 11 de Máster. El 28,6% de la muestra fueron hombres y el 71% fueron mujeres. La media de edad fue de 20,43 años. El equipo investigador estuvo compuesto por 40 personas: 25 PDI de la UCM, 2 PAS, 8 alumnos y alumnas, 1 técnico, y 4 PDI de las universidades de Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM), UNED, Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), y Alcalá de Henares (UAH). El PDI de la UCM correspondía a las siguientes facultades: Psicología (7), Ciencias de la Documentación (3), Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales (6), Ciencias Políticas y Sociología (3), Comercio (1), Trabajo Social (1), Ciencias Biológicas (2), Informática (1), y Bellas Artes (1). Un equipo UCM perteneciente a 9 facultades, que representó a 13 departamentos y a todas las áreas de conocimiento. La metodología empleada consistió en un cuestionario que evaluaba los siguientes aspectos: datos sociodemográficos, actitud emprendedora, y las variables psicológicas: personalidad, inteligencia emocional, resolución de problemas y tolerancia a la ambigüedad. Se optó por instrumentos estandarizados, con buenas características psicométricas de fiabilidad y validez que permitieran obtener resultados robustos, con amplia evidencia empírica y que evaluaban adecuadamente variables que la literatura ha relacionado con la actitud e iniciativa emprendedora. Además todos ellos se han utilizado en investigaciones relacionadas con emprendimiento, lo que aumentó la validez externa. Se ha analizado la iniciativa emprendedora desde el punto de vista de los estudiantes y también teniendo en cuenta variables del entorno familiar y personal. Los resultados nos muestran que son las variables psicológicas de extraversión, reparación emocional y estrategias de resolución de problemas las que predicen la iniciativa emprendedora. Los estudiante que compaginan estudios y trabajo tienen una mayor iniciativa emprendedora, y aquellos cuyos padres y/o pareja desarrollan su actividad laboral como autónomos. Se presentan datos por titulación académica, sexo, actividad laboral de los padres y compaginar estudios y trabajo. Se muestran datos de todas las variables psicológicas por titulación académica, y una comparativa de dichas variables entre los universitarios, un grupo de estudiantes de Formación Profesional (FP) y una muestra de emprendedores reales. Los resultados obtenidos son relevantes para tomar decisiones orientadas a la mejora de la actitud, iniciativa y comportamiento emprendedor. Permitirán el diseño y ejecución de actividades académicas para sensibilizar a los estudiantes en la cultura emprendedora, y formar en competencias transversales, cada vez más demandadas, para mejorar la empleabilidad y competitividad como claves para el crecimiento de nuestra sociedad

Evaluación del perfil competencial del estudiantado UCM por nivel de iniciativa emprendedora y género. Validación del Modelo Entrecomp de competencias emprendedoras

Examinar la relación entre las competencias emprendedoras propuestas por el Marco Europeo de Competencias Emprendedoras (Entrecomp) y el nivel de intención emprendedora. Se consideran las siguientes variables: sexo, estudios que realiza, si compagina trabajo y estudio, y Universidad en la que estudia