Text as data: Leveraging natural language processing to decode Parkinson's disease. Restricted; Files Only

Abstract

This dissertation explores the use of natural language processing (NLP) to enhance understanding of Parkinson's disease (PD) by analyzing text data from varied sources. It begins with examining academic publications to address the historical underrepresentation of women in PD research, revealing that despite NIH policies promoting sex and gender inclusivity, women's participation in studies remains disproportionately low compared to the prevalence of PD among women. To streamline the tracking of sex inclusion in research, we developed an automated tool using GPT-4-Turbo, which efficiently extracts data on sex inclusion from publications. We then address the issue of falls among PD patients by creating a classifier that categorizes falls based on patient descriptions, offering insights into biomechanical causes. This approach allows for more targeted fall prevention research. Finally, we analyze patient and caregiver experiences shared on Facebook to capture real-time discussions about disease onset, progression, and complications. This pipeline provides a direct source of patient-reported information, overcoming the limitations of traditional data collection methods. In summary, this work demonstrates NLP's capability to improve PD research and care by enhancing sex/gender representation monitoring in clinical studies, facilitate large-scale research on the prevention of falls, and extract insights from patient experiences, showcasing NLP's extensive potential in advancing research on PD. 

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: General Introduction................................................................................................. 1

Figures......................................................................................................................................12

References................................................................................................................................ 14

Chapter 2: Persistent Underrepresentation of Women in Parkinson's Disease Clinical Research:

A Systematic Review of Research Before and After Major NIH Policy Changes................. 22

Abstract.................................................................................................................................... 23

Introduction.............................................................................................................................. 24

Materials and Methods.............................................................................................................26

Results...................................................................................................................................... 31

Discussion................................................................................................................................ 38

Data Availability Statement..................................................................................................... 42

Acknowledgements.................................................................................................................. 42

Author Contributions............................................................................................................... 43

Figures......................................................................................................................................44

References................................................................................................................................ 56

Appendix A: Database Search Strategy...................................................................................59

Appendix B: Data Extraction Instructions...............................................................................65

Appendix C: PRISMA............................................................................................................. 71

Chapter 3: Monitoring Inclusion Practices by Sex in Scientific Publications using Natural Language Processing................................................................................................................... 77

Abstract.................................................................................................................................... 78

Introduction.............................................................................................................................. 79

Methods....................................................................................................................................81

Results...................................................................................................................................... 93

Discussion.............................................................................................................................. 100

Data Availability Statement................................................................................................... 103

Acknowledgements................................................................................................................ 103

Tables and Figures................................................................................................................. 104

References.............................................................................................................................. 114

Chapter 4: Classification of Fall Types in Parkinson Disease From Self-report Data Using Natural Language Processing................................................................................................... 117

Abstract.................................................................................................................................. 118

Introduction............................................................................................................................ 119

Results.................................................................................................................................... 124

Discussion.............................................................................................................................. 127

Acknowledgements................................................................................................................ 129

Tables..................................................................................................................................... 130

References.............................................................................................................................. 135

Chapter 5: Analyzing Facebook Use in Parkinson’s disease Patients and Caregivers:

A preliminary Analysis of an Exploratory Study................................................................... 139

Abstract.................................................................................................................................. 140

Introduction............................................................................................................................ 141

Methods..................................................................................................................................143

Results.................................................................................................................................... 148

Discussion.............................................................................................................................. 163

Acknowledgements................................................................................................................ 170

Tables and Figures................................................................................................................. 171

References.............................................................................................................................. 183

Appendix A: JSON Files....................................................................................................... 186

Appendix B: Term Dictionary............................................................................................... 188

Chapter 6: General Discussion................................................................................................. 203

References.............................................................................................................................. 208

Appendix A: Sex and Gender in Biomedical Research.......................................................... 210

References.............................................................................................................................. 213 

About this Dissertation

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School	Laney Graduate School
Department	Psychology
Subfield / Discipline	Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience
Degree	Ph.D.
Submission	Dissertation
Language	English
Research Field	Psychology, Behavioral Computer Science
Palabra Clave	Natural Language Processing Parkinson's disease
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	J. Lucas McKay, Emory University
Committee Members	Philip Kragel, Emory University Donna Maney, Emory University Abeed Sarker, Emory University Hillary Rodman, Emory University

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