Session Information
Date: Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Session Title: Technology
Session Time: 1:45pm-3:15pm
Location: Exhibit Hall C
Objective:
To perform an initial validation of a newly developed smartphone-based Timed Up & Go (TUG) application (AppTUG), by comparing its measurements to the stopwatch-measured TUG, and to explore its potential and usability for a more detailed analysis of TUG in healthy elderly controls (HC) and patients with normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) or Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Background: Smartphone applications can provide data regarding human motion by means of their integral sensors; The TUG test is a commonly used test for evaluating balance and walking ability associated with advancing age, neurological, or other disorders. However, TUG outcome is limited to the total test completion time, a measurement which is taken by a supervisor manually using a stopwatch.
Methods:
25 HC (age: 66.2±7.0 years), 25 patients with NPH (age: 67.8±7.6 years) and 15 with PD (age: 66.9±6.7 years) were recruited to perform a 3-meter and a 10-meter TUG. On top of the stopwatch measurement, the participants were monitored by an iPhone attached to their sternum, using the AppTUG.
Results: A high correlation was found between the TUG completion time recorded by the stopwatch and the AppTUG (r = 0.9818) for all subjects. Both measures found a longer TUG completion time for PD and NPH patients as compared with HC. The AppTUG demonstrated longer standing-up interval (p<0.01) for the NPH group as compared to both PD and HC, as well as a significantly longer sitting down time as compared to PD patients (p<0.01) who were slower than the HC (p<0.05).
Conclusions:
AppTUG provides an accurate TUG completion time. Additional movement-related data can be obtained, such as the standing-up and sitting-down times that can differentiate PD from NPH and HC. The AppTUG transforms a standard smartphone into a compact, accessible and user-friendly instrument for the physician for evaluating gait and balance both in the clinic and potentially in the patient’s natural environment.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
G. Yahalom, Z. Yekutieli, S. Korn-Israeli, S. Elincx-Benizri, V. Livneh, T. Fay-Karmon, Y. Rubel, S. Hassin-Baer. The AppTUG : a new application for analyzing the Timed Up and Go task in patients with neurological disorders [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2017; 32 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/the-apptug-a-new-application-for-analyzing-the-timed-up-and-go-task-in-patients-with-neurological-disorders/. Accessed June 14, 2025.« Back to 2017 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/the-apptug-a-new-application-for-analyzing-the-timed-up-and-go-task-in-patients-with-neurological-disorders/