Objective: To explore performance differences in single- versus dual-tasking conditions between healthy controls (HC) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients.

Background: Akinesia, comprising slowness (bradykinesia), reduction of amplitude (hypokinesia), and delay or absence of voluntary movements (akinesia), is the cardinal motor sign of PD. Even though these akinetic and multi-tasking deficits can be observed in PD patients, the recording and assessment are still challenging. To overcome these challenges, we developed a computerized multi-task paradigm.

Method: So far, we collected data from n=16 HC (aim n=60) and n=15 PD patients (n=10 left and n=5 right symptom dominant, aim n=40). In single-task conditions, the paradigm asked participants to either press a grip repeatedly or trace a given geometrical structure. In multi-task conditions, they needed to press the grip while simultaneously tracing a geometrical structure. The complexity factor was adjusted by narrowing the borders of the geometrical structure [Figure 1]. Different variables were extracted from the sampled grip profile [Figure 2], including the area under the curve (as global measure of akinesia), peak amplitude (hypokinesia), acceleration of force (bradykinesia), and interpeak interval (akinesia). We compared the performance of HC and PD patients with right and left symptom dominance separately in the difficult dual-tasking condition using independent sample t-tests with FDR correction (q<0.05).

Results: Preliminary results showed significant performance differences between HC and PD patients with left symptom dominance. PD patients showed a reduced area under the curve value and a reduced acceleration of force.

Conclusion: In conclusion, the computerized multi-task offers a promising tool for investigating akinetic and multi-tasking deficits in PD patients. Future analysis will include investigations on the effect of cognitive loads on motoric performance. Further, it will be highly relevant to investigate the relationship between our extracted akinesia measures and imaging biomarkers.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/assessing-akinesia-domains-during-multitasking-in-parkinsons-disease/