Publicaties

Background and aims: The relationship between impaired postural control and freezing of gait (FOG) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) is still unclear. Our aim was to identify if postural control deficits and gait dysfunction progress differently in freezers compared to non-freezers and whether this relates to FOG development. Methods: 76 PD patients, classified as freezer (n=17) or non-freezer (n=59), and 24 controls underwent a gait and postural ...

Cueing or feedback provided when gait deviates from a predefined goal (intelligent input) can now be provided with wearable technology for Parkinson's disease (PD). As people with and without freezing of gait (FOG) have distinct cognitive profiles, they may respond differently to various types of input. This study compared the effects of 4 input modalities during prolonged walking and explored the relationship with cognition, subjective ...

Background: Manual annotation of initial contact (IC) and end contact (EC) is a time consuming process. There are currently no robust techniques available to automate this process for Parkinson's disease (PD) patients with freezing of gait (FOG). Objective: To determine the validity of a data-driven approach for automated gait event detection. Methods: 15 freezers were asked to complete several straight-line and 360 degree turning trials in a 3D ...

Objective: (1) To evaluate the relationship between the occurrence of freezing episodes in the upper limbs (FO-UL), freezing of the feet, freezing of gait (FOG) and clinical outcomes in PD patients with and without FOG.
Background: Previous study suggests a correlation between FO-UL and FOG (Rs=0.64 ). The general nature of freezing problems in PD is not fully understood at present.
Methods: A group of freezers and non-freezers as defined ...

BACKGROUND: Freezing of gait (FOG) in Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with gait asymmetry and switching difficulty. A split-belt treadmill may potentially address those deficits. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the immediate and retention effects of one-session split-belt treadmill training (SBT) in contrast to regular tied-belt treadmill training (TBT) on gait asymmetry and adaptation in people with PD and FOG (PD + FOG) and healthy controls ...

BACKGROUND: Measurement of freezing of gait (FOG) relies on the sensitivity and reliability of tasks to provoke FOG. It is currently unclear which tasks provide the best outcomes and how medication state plays into this. OBJECTIVE: To establish the sensitivity and test-retest reliability of various FOG-provoking tasks for presence and severity of FOG, with (ON) and without (OFF) dopaminergic medication. METHODS: FOG-presence and percentage time ...

Background Recent studies show that besides freezing of gait (FOG), many people with Parkinson's disease (PD) also suffer from freezing in the upper limbs (FOUL). Up to now, it is unclear which task constraints provoke and explain upper limb freezing. Objective To investigate whether upper limb freezing and other kinematic abnormalities during writing are provoked by (i) gradual changes in amplitude or by (ii) sustained amplitude generation in ...

% !TeX root = ../../thesis.tex Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder, affecting an estimated 6 million people worldwide. PD causes degeneration of dopamine-generating neurons, which leads to progressively worsening gait impairments. One of the most debilitating gait impairments is freezing of gait (FOG). FOG is common in PD and is defined as a 'brief, episodic absence or marked reduction of forwarding progression of the ...

Background: Despite the strong relationship between freezing of gait (FOG) and turning in Parkinson's disease (PD), few studies have addressed specific postural characteristics during turning that might contribute to freezing. Methods: Thirty participants with PD (16 freezers, 14 non-freezers) (all tested OFF medication) and 14 healthy controls walked 5 meters and turned 180 degrees in a 3D gait laboratory. COM behavior was analyzed during four ...