How measuring muscle stiffness with the ‘The Bird’ could lead to earlier diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease

For people suspected of having Parkinson’s Disease it usually takes three frustrating years of medical investigation to reach a conclusive diagnosis.

There is no simple blood test or brain scan which identifies if someone has the neurological movement condition.

“There are several other disorders that mimic the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease,” biomedical engineer Doctor Thushara Perera explained to 9News.com.

“Even after three years the diagnosis is only about 80 percent accurate.”

But Dr Perera, who is based at Melbourne’s Bionics Institute, hopes to change that with his unusual new machine called the Bionics Institute Rigidity Device.

“We believe that it can lead to a definitive diagnosis.”

Nicknamed "The Bird" the device simply measures muscle stiffness, which is one of the first symptoms of Parkinson's.

The Bird looks like a bionic glove which slips onto the hand.

A miniature motor bends the patient's middle finger repetitively for about 30 seconds.

Sensors then detect the amount of effort for finger movement; the more rigid the patient's muscles are, the more effort is required.

“By measuring the effort required by the motor to bend the joints we can work out the stiffness of the muscles,” said Dr Perera.

Currently neurologists analyse patient stiffness passively through “hands on” and subjective “testing” which is open to interpretation and in turn inaccuracy.

The Bird can more scientifically distinguish the difference in rigidity between people with and without Parkinson’s disease.

“In the clinic it takes three years to diagnose but we think we can do it in three minutes.”

This invention could save patients and doctors a significant amount of time in being diagnosed. And this would allow earlier therapeutic intervention.

“It takes away a lot of the uncertainty and apprehension that patients have about an unknown condition.”

The Bird is currently in the prototype stage.

However with funding support this Australian-first bionic glove could be refined and in use sooner rather than later.