A novel research study, entitled “Gait Alterations in the Prediction of Metabolic Syndrome in Patients with Schizophrenia: A Pilot Study with PODOSmart® Insoles” was recently published in the January 2022 in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, which publishes rigorously peer-reviewed research.

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The purpose of this new study was to investigate whether the metabolic syndrome (MetS) in patients with psychosis treated with second-generation antipsychotics (APs) is associated with alterations in gait, the type of APs medication and other inflammatory-metabolic biomarkers. The study results demonstrated that gait parameters calculated by PODOSmart® have a stronger association with MetS than clinical, anthropometric and biochemical variables.

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It is important to note that early diagnosis of MetS in patients with schizophrenia via identification of gait alterations, can be a preventive screening measure for serious cardiovascular complications related to psychosis and APs, thus enabling timely dietary intervention that can control the pro-inflammatory state and reduce oxidative stress.

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The first-generation smart insole PODOSmart® system was first introduced in 2019 as a new tool for gait analysis against high-cost laboratory-based equipment. The PODOSmart® system measures walking profile and gait variables in real-life conditions. PODOSmart® insoles consist of wireless sensors, which can be fitted into any shoe and offer the ability to measure spatial, temporal, and kinematic gait parameters. Both the process to gather the data and the algorithms used for the analyses are patented by Digitsole.

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Digitsole, a pioneer and world leader in digital health, officially launched its new second-generation, Digitsole Pro® system and smart insoles in February 2022 in the U.S., with even more advanced medical applications than its former predecessor PODOSmart® -- it was strategically developed on the same proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) based technology platform, further underscoring and validating its utility. Digitsole Pro® will allow healthcare professionals to improve a patient’s walking, running and baseline clinical assessments by measuring objective biomechanical data that cannot be observed by the human eye. This innovative solution provides healthcare experts with the ability to improve patient outcomes.

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To review the full published study manuscript, click here. Additional research studies are being planned.

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‍*Frontiers, which publishes multiple journals such as Frontiers in Psychiatry, is a leading Open Access Publisher and Open Science Platform. Their journals are led and peer-reviewed by editorial boards of over 100,000 top researchers. Covering more than 900 academic disciplines, they are one of the largest and highest-cited publishers in the world. To date, their freely accessible research articles have received over 1 billion views and downloads and 1.6 million citations.

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