Scientist invents pen that can detects Parkinson's disease

Scientists have created an innovative pen that uses artificial intelligence to analyze hand movements and detect early signs of Parkinson’s disease — a breakthrough that could enable affordable and accessible diagnosis.

The pen distinguishes between the handwriting of individuals with and without Parkinson’s, a neurological disorder that affects around 10 million people globally. Common symptoms include tremors and impaired motor control.

Parkinson’s is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative condition after Alzheimer’s and is the fastest-growing of its kind. Yet, in many low- and middle-income countries, diagnoses are often underestimated due to a lack of neurological specialists.

Because handwriting involves intricate brain-hand coordination, it is particularly sensitive to changes caused by Parkinson’s. Building on this, researchers developed a pen equipped with magnetic ink and a soft, magnetoelastic tip. The device captures both on-surface and in-air writing motions, converting them into high-quality electrical signals that can be interpreted for Parkinson’s diagnosis — all without requiring external power.

Parkinson's disease diagnostic pen (Jun Chen)

In tests, the AI-assisted pen successfully distinguished between handwriting samples from three Parkinson’s patients and 13 healthy individuals, achieving over 95% accuracy in this small study group.

Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, and their collaborators hope this technology will evolve into a low-cost, reliable tool that can be broadly distributed, particularly in regions with limited medical resources.

“Our diagnostic pen offers an affordable, scalable, and dependable solution with the potential to transform Parkinson’s detection, especially for individuals who may be unaware they have the condition,” the researchers noted.