A device, which it is hoped will help improve the quality of life of people with Parkinson's disease, is being developed with the help of researchers in Galway.

The EU project involves 11 partners throughout Europe, including researchers in NUI Galway. They are working together to develop the REMPARK (Personal Health Device for the Remote and Autonomous Management of Parkinson's Disease).

Parkinson's is a progressive neurological disease, the symptoms of which include tremors, stiffness and slow movement. An estimated 8,000 people in Ireland are affected and there is no cure.

The REMPARK is a wearable device that is capable of identifying the motor status of patients, guiding them to walk more easily and delivering real-time health data to their medical teams.

It is hoped that this real-time data will eventually be used in the delivery of drugs to the patient, making drug treatment more efficient overall.

"The REMPARK project expects to ultimately improve the management of the disease, reduce the hospitalisation of patients, and improve medical knowledge on Parkinson's through the quantitative evaluation of associated motor problem states," NUI Galway said.

According to Prof Gearóid Ó Laighin, professor of electronic engineering at NUI Galway and REMAPRK principal investigator, one of the main problems associated with Parkinson's is the motor fluctuations suffered by patients.

"These include tremors, changes in walking speed, freezing of gait and falls. The severity of these depends on the patient and the stage of progression of the disease," he explained.

NUI Galway is directly involved in the development of a novel electrical stimulation system to help in the management of these motor fluctuations.

"As one of four clinical partners, NUI Galway/University Hospitals Galway will also provide access to Irish Parkinson's patients to test and evaluate the system under development, with the support and assistance of patient groups such as the Galway Parkinson's Association and the European Parkinson's Disease Association," the university explained.

The project also plans to use smartphone technology to supply information to a central computer server. This will allow easy interaction with neurologists who are supervising patients.

Commenting on the project, Dr Tim Counihan, a consultant neurologist at University Hospital Galway and NUI Galway senior lecturer, explained that currently, medication is used to lessen the severity of symptoms.

"Neurologists try to set the medication dose in order to avoid the presence of motor fluctuations as much as possible. The problem that neurologists currently face is the lack of quantitative information on the intensity of the symptoms and their duration.

"Neurologists would be able to manage the disease more effectively if this information could be provided, which we hope is what the REMPARK project will deliver," Dr Counihan said.

For more information on this EU project, click here