ABSTRACT
Methods to measure physical activity and sedentary behaviors typically quantify the amount of time devoted to these activities. Among patients with chronic diseases, these methods can provide interesting behavioral information, but generally do not capture detailed body motion and fine movement behaviors. Fine detection of motion may provide additional information about functional decline that is of clinical interest in chronic diseases. This perspective paper highlights the need for more developed and sophisticated tools to better identify and track the decomposition, structuration, and sequencing of the daily movements of humans. The primary goal is to provide a reliable and useful clinical diagnostic and predictive indicator of the stage and evolution of chronic diseases, in order to prevent related comorbidities and complications among patients.
