Our director of research on BBC radio 4
16 August 2012
Our director of research and innovation, Dr Kieran Breen,
appeared on BBC radio 4 programme Material World on 16
August 2012. Kieran discussed the Parkinson's Voice Initiative.
We know that speech is often affected in people with Parkinson's - so developing a test that can spot the earliest subtle changes is a an exciting prospect.
Dr Kieran Breen, Director of Research and Innovation
Listen to the BBC radio 4
clip
This international study aims to record up to 10,000 voices to
see if changes in voice patterns can help to diagnose or monitor
changes in Parkinson's.
An innovative study
Kieran comments:
"The Parkinson's Voice Initiative is an innovative project
which could lead to voice recognition tests that can diagnose and
monitor Parkinson's.
"We know that speech is often affected in people with
Parkinson's - so developing a test that can spot the earliest
subtle changes is an exciting prospect.
"At the moment we don't have a definitive test to diagnose
Parkinson's, and no reliable way to monitor the development of the
condition - which is a massive barrier to finding a cure.
"Finding simple and accurate ways to diagnose and monitor
Parkinson's is one of our key research priorities and it's the ultimate
goal of our new Tracking Parkinson's study."
Pick up the phone - take part in the Parkinson's Voice
Initiative
The
US-based research team behind the Parkinson's Voice Initiative are
looking for 10,000 people around the world - with and
without Parkinson's - to take part.
Anyone in the UK can lend their voice to the study by calling
01865 521168 for a 3-5 minute phone call - you will be
charged for the call at the national call rate.
Your voice will be recorded and used by the team to hone their
voice recognition tool.
Find out more about the study by reading the FAQs on the Parkinson's
Voice Initiative website.
Get involved in research
There are lots of different ways to get
involved in Parkinson's research:
- email
-
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