Stetter Laura, Wolski Lucas, Grimmer Timo, Diehl-Schmid Janine, Hermsdörfer Joachim
Chair of Human Movement Science, TUM School of Medicine and Health, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technical University of Munich, School of Medicine and Health, TUM University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
J Alzheimers Dis Rep. 2025 Oct 14;9:25424823251385512. doi: 10.1177/25424823251385512. eCollection 2025 Jan-Dec.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia, characterized by a progressive deterioration of cognitive capacity and the ability to carry out activities of daily living (ADL). Hand motor function may also be impaired, with slower and less automated movements during fine motor tasks. The severity of impairments may depend on task characteristics and the age of onset of AD.
This study investigated hand motor function of persons with dementia due to AD during handwriting and sequential hand movements, focusing on the impact of task complexity and age at onset.
Kinematic analysis of handwriting and sequential hand movements was carried out in 24 AD patients (early-onset AD (EOAD): n = 13; late-onset AD (LOAD): n = 11) and 23 controls (≤ 65 years: n = 12; > 65 years: n = 11). To estimate the impact on patients' ADL performance, the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test (JTHFT) was administered.
AD patients exhibited a significantly lower handwriting and sequencing performance compared to healthy controls. Complexity effects were detectable for handwriting and sequencing; for z-standardized sequencing frequency, they were more prominent in AD patients than controls. Age at onset had no effect on handwriting or sequential hand movements; however, handwriting and sequencing frequency were predictive of JTHFT performance in EOAD, but not in LOAD.
Kinematic measures of both handwriting and sequential hand movements were able to capture impairments in AD patients. Deteriorations of frequencies seem to translate into deficits in simulated ADL performance only in EOAD.
阿尔茨海默病（AD）是痴呆最常见的病因，其特征为认知能力和日常生活活动能力（ADL）的进行性衰退。手部运动功能也可能受损，在精细运动任务中动作更缓慢且自动化程度更低。损伤的严重程度可能取决于任务特征和AD的发病年龄。
本研究调查了AD所致痴呆患者在书写和连续手部运动时的手部运动功能，重点关注任务复杂性和发病年龄的影响。
对24例AD患者（早发型AD（EOAD）：n = 13；晚发型AD（LOAD）：n = 11）和23名对照者（≤65岁：n = 12；>65岁：n = 11）进行了书写和连续手部运动的运动学分析。为评估对患者ADL表现的影响，实施了杰布森-泰勒手部功能测试（JTHFT）。
与健康对照者相比，AD患者的书写和序列完成表现显著更低。书写和序列完成存在复杂性效应；对于z标准化序列频率，AD患者中的效应比对照者更显著。发病年龄对书写或连续手部运动没有影响；然而，书写和序列频率可预测EOAD患者的JTHFT表现，但不能预测LOAD患者的表现。
书写和连续手部运动的运动学测量均能够捕捉AD患者的损伤。频率的衰退似乎仅在EOAD中转化为模拟ADL表现的缺陷。
