SBIR Phase I: Mitigating the effects of isolation and absence of therapies through the delivery of cloud based digital treatments and remote patient monitoring

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to improve the quality of life for the more than 1 million Americans currently suffering from Parkinson’s Disease (PD) while reducing the growing economic burden on the healthcare system. Outpatient physical and occupational therapy, speech therapy, and mental health are key components in the treatment and management of PD.

Early intervention and appropriate symptomatic management utilizing these therapies is essential for best long-term outcomes; Inadequate and infrequent treatment, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, places a heavier burden on Person with Parkinson’s (PwP) and their families and a greater financial burden on the healthcare system. Delivering remote therapies and monitoring performance via the proposed in-home therapy platform may demonstrate a reduction in symptoms or slowing of disease progression, thereby helping to reduce costly, adverse medical complications and improving the PwP quality of life.

Data collected from regular in-home, daily therapies may lead to improved standards of care and aid the research community in the search for a cure. Once proven effective in the beachhead market of PD, the technology could be trialed in the mainstream markets of Alzheimer’s, Dementia, and the aging population.

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will develop a prototype for an automated therapy delivery and remote patient monitoring platform for those suffering from Parkinson’s Disease (PD). This automated platform will provide access to daily therapies for the Person with Parkinson’s (PwP) by facilitating remote therapeutic exercise and social engagement via an in-home device that monitors real-time functionality to adapt cloud based digital content to optimize physical performance, cognition, and physiological response to exercise and cognitive tasks.

Such a therapeutic system should have similar levels of efficacy as in-person therapy and treatment sessions, enabling participation in the much needed therapies while simultaneously reducing the burdens placed on the PwP, their families, and the healthcare system. The subjective report data, physiological response data, and objective performance data collected throughout each session will be summarized in a report for the PwP, their families, and their caregivers or healthcare providers to improve the continued delivery of treatment, clinical decision making, and health and safety of the patient.

This proposed technology will help to reduce the effects of isolation, provide access to physical therapy and exercise treatments and improve the remote monitoring of patients throughout the COVID-19 pandemic crisis and beyond.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.