Parkinson’s Disease Information Added to NIHSeniorHealth Web Site

“More than half a million Americans suffer from Parkinson’s disease, a brain disorder that leads to tremor and difficulty with walking, movement, and coordination. Although not a normal part of aging, Parkinson’s occurs most often among people 60 and older, and the risk increases with age. Older adults now can visit the NIHSeniorHealth Web site to learn more about Parkinson’s disease at www.nihseniorhealth.gov/parkinsonsdisease/toc.html. The Web site from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is geared toward older adults and features clear language.”
Article
NIHNews, 29 September 2008

Web-based personal health records: the personal electronic health record (pEHR) multicentred trial

“A multicentre trial of a Web-based personal electronic health record (pEHR) service was conducted in three different European hospitals. A total of 150 patients and 22 health-care professionals were involved. The service was customised according to the needs of three groups of patients who had congenital heart disease, Parkinson’s disease and type 2 diabetes. Two structured questionnaires, one for patients and one for health-care professionals, were used to collect their views on the pEHR service. The questions were about usability and user friendliness, safety and trustworthiness, reliability, functionality, satisfaction and the potential revenue model of the service in the case of future deployment. Patients perceived the service as very motivating and felt that it could help them in managing their clinical information. Health-care professionals showed a very positive attitude towards the use of the service and its potential for future large-scale deployment. They were also keen to recommend the service to their patients. Both study groups were unwilling to pay for the service and preferred it to be sponsored by a third party (e.g. the National Health Service).”
Abstract
Karagiannis, George E.; Stamatopoulos, Vasileios G.; Rigby, Michael; Kotis, Takis; Negroni, Elisa; Munoz, Adolfo; Mathes, Ioannis, Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, Volume 13, Supplement 1

PARKSERVICE: Home Support and Walking Aid for People with Parkinson’s Disease

U. Delprato, R. Greenlaw, M. Cristaldi
PARKAID Srl, Italy;
Oxford Computer Consultants Ltd, UK;
IES Srl, Italy

Abstract

PARKSERVICE is a telemedical application currently being validated in the EU. The objectives are to provide a combination of home clinical and social support for people with Parkinson’s disease with a revolutionary walking aid that uses “visual cues” to enable improved mobility. Early results are presented and the outlook of home telemedicine and visual cueing for people with PD is discussed.