Teaching tape for the motor section of the unified Parkinson's disease rating scale

Abstract

Abstract We developed a teaching tape of the motor section of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) to provide investigators with a visual document of three raters' interpretations of the scoring system for each item except rigidity. The rate of agreement for the selected samples was always significant, with Kendall's coefficient of concordance W ranging between 0.97 and 0.62. We also provided full UPDRS ratings on sample patients that may be used for training and for multicenter studies to assure uniformity of rating. The study identified several items of the UPDRS motor examination for which written instructions were vague, including speech, action tremor, finger taps, rapid alternating movements, and postural stability. Future versions of the scale should address these problems and correct ambiguities. This project offers the first attempt to provide a visual analog for the UPDRS.

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Affiliated Institutions

• Columbia University US
• Rush University Medical Center US
• Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center US
• National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery GB
• The Neurological Institute US
• University of London GB
• University College London GB

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