Collection of the digital data from the neurological examination

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Digital Health
• Medical Technology

Background:

• The neurological examination is fundamental in clinical practice.
• Digitalization offers potential advancements in objective assessment.
• Assessing the current integration of digital tools is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the current status of digitalization in in-person neurological examinations.
• To identify the key elements of the neurological exam being digitized.
• To analyze the characteristics of digital tools used.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of 520 studies.
• Focus on in-person, non-telemedicine neurological assessments.
• Categorization of digital tools by examined neurological element and device characteristics.

Main Results:

• Digital tools have been developed for ten key neurological elements, with gait and motor system assessments being most common.
• The majority of digital tools are portable (85%) and many are wearable (41%).
• Device complexity is generally low (61%), but half require significant analytical effort; cost was discussed in 32% of studies.

Conclusions:

• Digitalization is progressing in neurological examinations, particularly for motor and gait assessments.
• Portable and wearable digital tools are prevalent, offering new avenues for objective data collection.
• Further research may be needed to optimize the analytical efficiency of these digital tools.