PPT Slide
The Benefits of Exercise in Patients with Parkinson’s Disease. Jasdeep Girn
Objective: To examine the beneficial effects of exercise for patients that have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Method: CINAHL, MEDLINE, pubMED, and psycINFO were searched for articles that had been published after 1984. The key words that were used in the search were as follows: Parkinson’s disease, exercise, physical therapy, physical activity and rehabilitation. Further literature was obtained via searching the reference lists of the articles initially found. Results: Exercise programs for patients with PD resulted in several therapeutic benefits. Outcome measures used in the studies indicated that involvement in a prescribed exercise routine resulted in several physical and motor improvements. Some of the results seen were increased reaction time, increased grip strength and increased speed in rapid alternating movements. Moreover, other findings included improvement in gait and decreased tremor post exercise. Studies not only found physical improvements, however, there were also psychological benefits. Numerous studies indicated that being on an exercise program would help to alleviate psychosocial symptoms such as depression and overall, enhance one’s quality of life. Although several benefits were noted post exercise, the extent to which these benefits lasted, differed among studies. Conclusion: Exercise has the potential to be an excellent source of therapy for patients with PD due to its several beneficial effects. Clinical Relevance: Some patients who have been diagnosed with PD are not currently undergoing exercise and physical rehabilitation. Findings show that exercise has a promising future in the treatment of PD, and can be used as an adjunct to medication in alleviating several of the associated symptoms.