Contribution of the Kinematic Theory in the Early Differential Diagnosis of the Parkinson's Disease

The strength of this study is to compares three refined parametric approaches drawn from functions mediated by very different neuromuscular programs (visually guided voluntary movement control to perform trajectories with the hand or arm versus vocal control) among two groups of patients and a healthy group. Its weakness lies in the lack of multimodal methods to accurately confirm clinical diagnosis and the predictive reliability of patient performance. These modalities are too costly to be included in this project. However, different oculovisual measurement standards such as optical coherence tomography, hyperspectral imaging (OPTINA Diagnostics Inc.), and eye tracking will be used at the School of Optometry, University of Montreal. There is indeed a remodeling of the retina and oculomotor changes in Parkinson's Disease (PD) and these non-invasive techniques, which have been accepted for several years, will be used in patients in support of their clinical diagnosis compared to normal subjects.

Inclusion criteria

• Being diagnosed with Parkinsonism including idiopathic Parkinson's disease or a related syndrome;
• Have motor symptoms of Parkinsonism for 6 years or less;
• Be a healthy volunteer subject in good general health with no prior neurological history;
• Age between 50-75 years old;
• If applicable, be able to safely leave home in the morning without having taken antiparkinsonian medication for the past 12 hours.

Exclusion criteria

• Major neurocognitive disorders;
• History of other neurological conditions, such as ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke, paralysis of a limb, traumatic brain injury, epilepsy, orofacial dystonia, essential tremor;
• History of oromandibular or laryngeal procedures;
• Uncorrected deafness;
• Any contraindication to pupillary dilation.