A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA Project
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor symptoms, with tremors being one of the most prominent. Traditional assessment methods, such as the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), rely on subjective, intermittent evaluations, which can mi...
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MDPI AG
2025-04-01
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| author | Yessica Saez Cristian Ureña Julia Valenzuela Antony García Edwin Collado |
| author_facet | Yessica Saez Cristian Ureña Julia Valenzuela Antony García Edwin Collado |
| author_sort | Yessica Saez |
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| description | Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor symptoms, with tremors being one of the most prominent. Traditional assessment methods, such as the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), rely on subjective, intermittent evaluations, which can miss symptom fluctuations. This study presents the development and validation of the ELENA system, an IoT-based wearable device designed for the continuous monitoring of tremors in PD patients and medication tracking in PD patients. Named in honor of a 67-year-old woman who has lived with Parkinson’s since 2011 and inspired the project, the ELENA system integrates an MPU6050 accelerometer, an ESP32 microcontroller, and cloud-based data analysis and MATLAB. The ELENA system was calibrated and validated against an Apple Watch, demonstrating high accuracy with frequency deviations under 0.5% and an average percentage error of −0.37%. Unlike commercial devices, ELENA offers a clinical-grade solution with customizable data access and visualization tailored for healthcare providers. Participants, including PD patients and a non-PD control group, completed a series of clinical tasks to evaluate tremor monitoring capabilities. The results showed that the system effectively captured tremor frequency and amplitude, enabling the analysis of resting, action, and postural tremors. This study highlights the ELENA system’s potential to enhance PD management by providing real-time, remote monitoring of tremors. The scalable, cost-effective solution supports healthcare professionals in tracking disease progression and optimizing treatment plans, paving the way for improved patient outcomes. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1424-8220 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| spelling | doaj-art-44bbcfabb65343f1aab15f5c930dd2cd2025-08-20T01:50:46ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202025-04-01259276310.3390/s25092763A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA ProjectYessica Saez0Cristian Ureña1Julia Valenzuela2Antony García3Edwin Collado4Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panama City 0819-07289, PanamaUniversidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panama City 0819-07289, PanamaMinisterio de Salud, Hospital Regional Anita Moreno, La Villa de Los Santos 0819-11380, PanamaUniversidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panama City 0819-07289, PanamaUniversidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panama City 0819-07289, PanamaParkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor symptoms, with tremors being one of the most prominent. Traditional assessment methods, such as the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), rely on subjective, intermittent evaluations, which can miss symptom fluctuations. This study presents the development and validation of the ELENA system, an IoT-based wearable device designed for the continuous monitoring of tremors in PD patients and medication tracking in PD patients. Named in honor of a 67-year-old woman who has lived with Parkinson’s since 2011 and inspired the project, the ELENA system integrates an MPU6050 accelerometer, an ESP32 microcontroller, and cloud-based data analysis and MATLAB. The ELENA system was calibrated and validated against an Apple Watch, demonstrating high accuracy with frequency deviations under 0.5% and an average percentage error of −0.37%. Unlike commercial devices, ELENA offers a clinical-grade solution with customizable data access and visualization tailored for healthcare providers. Participants, including PD patients and a non-PD control group, completed a series of clinical tasks to evaluate tremor monitoring capabilities. The results showed that the system effectively captured tremor frequency and amplitude, enabling the analysis of resting, action, and postural tremors. This study highlights the ELENA system’s potential to enhance PD management by providing real-time, remote monitoring of tremors. The scalable, cost-effective solution supports healthcare professionals in tracking disease progression and optimizing treatment plans, paving the way for improved patient outcomes.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/9/2763inertial sensinginternet of thingstremor analysistremor monitoringParkinson’s disease |
| spellingShingle | Yessica Saez Cristian Ureña Julia Valenzuela Antony García Edwin Collado A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA Project Sensors inertial sensing internet of things tremor analysis tremor monitoring Parkinson’s disease |
| title | A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA Project |
| title_full | A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA Project |
| title_fullStr | A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA Project |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA Project |
| title_short | A Wearable Internet of Things-Based Device for the Quantitative Assessment of Hand Tremors in Parkinson’s Disease: The ELENA Project |
| title_sort | wearable internet of things based device for the quantitative assessment of hand tremors in parkinson s disease the elena project |
| topic | inertial sensing internet of things tremor analysis tremor monitoring Parkinson’s disease |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/9/2763 |
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