Exploring the relationship between brain white matter change and higher degree of invisible hand tremor with computer technology

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Hu, Yang^{a; 1} | Wu, Yanqing^{b; 1} | Tu, Jianglong^{c; 1} | Su, Hai^b | Zeng, Luchuan^d | Lei, Jie^d | Xia, Linglin^{d; *}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China | [b] Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China | [c] Department of Nephrology Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China | [d] School of Software, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Linglin Xia, School of Software, Nanchang University, 235 Nanjing East Road, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330047, China. E-mail: xialinglin@ncu.edu.cn.

Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this work and they are co-first authors.

Abstract: BACKGROUND: At present, the clinical diagnosis of white matter change (WMC) patients depends on cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology. This diagnostic method is costly and does not allow for large-scale screening, leading to delays in the patient’s condition due to inability to receive timely diagnosis. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether the burden of WMC is associated with the degree of invisible hand tremor in humans. METHODS: Previous studies have shown that tremor is associated with WMC, however, tremor does not always have imaging of WMC. Therefore, to confirm that the appearance of WMC causes tremor, which are sometimes invisible to the naked eye, we achieved an optical-based computer-aided diagnostic device by detecting the invisible hand tremor, and we proposed a calculation method of WMC volume by using the characteristics of MRI images. RESULTS: Statistical analysis results further clarified the relationship between WMC and tremor, and our devices are validated for the detection of tremors with WMC. CONCLUSIONS: The burden of WMC volume is positive factor for degree of invisible hand tremor in the participants without visible hand tremor. Detection technology provides a more convenient and low-cost evaluating method before MRI for tremor diseases.

Keywords: WMC, tremor, segmentation, multiple linear regression, hands

DOI: 10.3233/THC-220361

Journal: Technology and Health Care, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 921-931, 2023