Objective: To determine the effectiveness of a biomechanical glove in the setting of essential tremor (ET) using both kinematic and clinical evaluation.

Background: Essential tremor (ET) is the most common movement disorder amongst adults, affecting approximately 1% of the population. Treatment options exist for ET, but they are limited in their effectiveness. A glove-based tremor dampener has been recently developed as a potential solution with its effectiveness currently unknown. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of this device.

Method: Patients 18 years and older with diagnosed ET were recruited by their treating neurologist for this ethics-approved study. The participants completed a series of tasks, static and dynamic, taken from the Fahn-Tolosa-Marin (FTM) scale. These tasks were performed under three conditions: a baseline assessment with no glove, an assessment with a weight-matched (sham) glove, an assessment with the true device. Outcomes were collected by clinical assessment using the FTM scale, and kinematic analysis via a multi-sensor kinematic unit. Descriptive statistical analysis was conducted.

Results: Preliminary data from 10 patients is presented here. By kinematic analysis, a decrease in the tremor amplitude of acceleration greater than 20% from baseline was defined as a significant improvement. For static tasks, 6/10 patients improved with the true glove, while 5/10 improved with the sham. For dynamic tasks, 8/10 improved with the true glove, while 7/10 improved with the sham. This was calculated comparing the patient’s three worst tasks. By the FTM scale, those patients that had improved by kinematic analysis had a 0.81-point score clinical improvement across all static tasks with the real glove. and a 0.30-point improvement with the sham. There was a 0.57-point improvement in dynamic tasks with the real glove, and a 0.39-point improvement with the sham.

Conclusion: Clinical and kinematic data demonstrating the effect of a glove-based tremor dampener for ET has been presented in this study. This preliminary analysis may demonstrate a greater tremor reduction using the true glove when compared to the sham, but larger sample sizes are required to validate these findings. This study is in progress and more patients are being recruited. This data will be critical in informing further development of this device and similar assistive technology for ET.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/clinical-and-kinematic-assessment-of-a-glove-based-tremor-dampener-in-patients-with-essential-tremor/