Smart wearable device (GaitQ)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Smart wearable device (GaitQ) that helps people with longterm conditions affecting movement walk better
IRAS ID
324207
Contact name
Helen Dawes
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The University of Exeter
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Mobility issues affect 1/3 of the adult population requiring rehabilitation. Current shortages in skilled rehabilitation professionals requires novel approaches to address this unmet need. We propose to develop a gait device for people with mobility issues. Here we first focus on people with Parkinson's and then on people with other conditions affecting their movement. Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. Approximately half of people with Parkinson's (PwP) suffer from debilitating gait symptoms such as festination (FSG - increased step frequency, shortened stride length) and freezing (FOG - inability to initiate/continue movement). Both FOG and FSG contribute to the two-fold increased risk of falling in PwP. Fear of falling and balance concerns are number one concern in the James Lind Alliance top ten priorities for patients, families and clinicians. ‘Cueing’ is an established method to initiate and maintain gait by providing an external stimulus to activate alternative motor pathways in the brain that bypass the regions affected by Parkinson's. Use of cueing by PwP is endorsed by the Royal College of Occupational Therapists. However, there are several practical challenges to bring cueing to PwP’s daily lives: Difficulty in multi-tasking limits self-cueing by PwP. Existing basic rhythmic cueing methods do not adapt to changes in gait quality or activities undertaken. PwP can become habituated to repetitive cuing, reducing efficacy. gaitQ has been developing a smart cueing system that comprises two wearable devices, worn on the upper calves, to automatically deliver vibrational cues when needed and adapt to the user’s walking characteristics.
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/YH/0090
Date of REC Opinion
25 May 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion