4.2 Article

Nordic walking training in persons with Parkinson's disease: Individualized prescription-A case series

Journal

PHYSIOTHERAPY THEORY AND PRACTICE
Volume 39, Issue 10, Pages 2208-2222

Publisher

TAYLOR & FRANCIS INC
DOI: 10.1080/09593985.2022.2063211

Keywords

Parkinson's disease; locomotor training; exercise; walking outcomes

Categories

Ask authors/readers for more resources

This case series suggests that customized Nordic walking training has therapeutic benefits for individuals with Parkinson's gait dysfunction. The gains in motor and gait function were retained in the 3-month follow-up phase.
Introduction Physical therapy interventions for patients with Parkinson's disease prioritize task-specific exercise to address gait and motor dysfunction. Nordic walking (NW) is a moderate intensity exercise promoting walking speed and rhythm. This case series describes the application of customized NW training in individuals with varied severity of Parkinson's gait dysfunction and the outcomes specific to gait, motor and non-motor symptoms; and NW engagement and retention in the follow-up phase. Case Description Three individuals with idiopathic PD (two males and one female; ages 59-69; Hoehn & Yahr stages II-III) participated. Supervised NW training phase included 15 one-hour sessions over 6-weeks, individually progressed for each participant. During the 3-month follow-up phase independent NW exercise was prescribed 3 times a week. Primary outcome measures examined gait function and impairment-based measures assessed Parkinson's motor and nonmotor symptoms. Outcomes Participants improved in: 10-Meter walk-fast speed (0.13, 0.18, 0.15 m/s; respectively); 6-Minute Walk distance (137.5, 56.4, 129.4 m, respectively); Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale-Motor Score (-6, -7, -14, respectively); and all Timed-Up-Go subtests. Participant 2 had 44.4% decline in freezing episodes and reduced fall rate. Participants' gains were retained at the 3-month follow-up. Discussion This case series suggests that NW has therapeutic benefits for three individuals with varied Parkinson's gait dysfunction. Independent NW exercise was sustained post-training and motor and gait function gains were retained.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.2
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available