The influence of dance on selected risk factors of falls in Parkinson's disease patients - A pilot study

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) patients may develop several motion control disorders leading to deterioration in body balance and general mobility, which in turn increases the risk of falls. The aim of this study was to examine the influence of therapeutic dancing classes on functional mobility, gait, body balance and endurance in Parkinson's disease patients. Material/Methods: The study was conducted on a group of 10 participants (aged 69.9 +/- 6.47) suffering from PD. Testing was applied twice: at the beginning of the study and after 12 weeks of dance-based intervention training. Tests used for the purpose of the study included: Tinetti Performance Oriented Mobility Assessment (parts 1 and 2), timed up-and-go test and 6 min walk test. Results: The study results indicate that therapeutic dancing classes significantly increased body balance (p = 0.002), gait (p = 0.047), functional mobility (p = 0.005) and endurance (p = 0.002) in PD patients. Conclusions: The acquired results can be instrumental in devising future therapeutic programs aiming at prevention of falls in PD sufferers.