Video analysis reveals early signs of Bradykinesia in REM sleep behavior disorder and Parkinson's disease.

Journal: NPJ Parkinson's disease
Published Date: Jul 30, 2025

Abstract

Idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (iRBD) is a strong predictor of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's disease (PD). Early detection of motor impairments such as bradykinesia is critical for identifying at-risk populations. This study analyzed Finger Tapping Task videos from 66 participants, including healthy controls (HC) and individuals with iRBD and PD. Only videos that received a clinician score of zero on the MDS-UPDRS Part-III finger tapping item were analyzed. Movement amplitude, speed, and their decrements during the task were directly estimated from the videos using machine learning algorithms. Bradykinesia and hypokinesia were detectable in PD but not in iRBD, while decrement in movement amplitude and speed were observed in PD and iRBD. Classification models achieved 81.5% accuracy distinguishing PD from HC, 79.8% distinguishing iRBD from HC, and 81.7% differentiating iRBD from PD. Video-based assessments offer a low-cost, scalable solution for supporting the identification individuals at risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases.

Authors

  • Diego L Guarin
    Department of Otolaryngology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge.
  • Gabriela Acevedo
    Department of Applied Physiology and Kinesiology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
  • Carolina Calonge
    Department of Applied Physiology and Kinesiology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
  • Joshua K Wong
  • Nikolaus R McFarland
    Fixel Institute for Neurological Disease, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL.
  • Adolfo Ramirez-Zamora
  • David E Vaillancourt
    Laboratory for Rehabilitation Neuroscience, Department of Applied Physiology and Kinesiology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL.

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