AI Analyzes Facial Expressions in Videos to Help Detect Parkinson's

An artificial intelligence (AI) tool was able to distinguish, with great accuracy, Parkinson's patients from healthy peers by analyzing short videos of facial expressions, particularly smiles, a small study shows. The predictive accuracy of the new tool was comparable to that of video analysis that uses motor tasks to detect Parkinson's, pinpointing facial expressions as a potential digital, diagnostic biomarker of the disease. This type of biomarker could allow remote diagnosis without the need for personal interaction and extensive testing. This would be particularly relevant in situations such as a pandemic, in cases of reduced mobility, or in underdeveloped countries where few neurologists exist but most people have access to a phone with a camera, researchers noted. The study, "Facial expressions can detect Parkinson's disease: preliminary evidence from videos collected online," was published as a brief communication in the journal npj Digital Medicine.