The Effect of Exercise Training on Gait and Quality of Life in Parkinson's Disease

Summary

The project aims to evaluate the effects of 24 weeks of treadmill training (TT), with and without a strengthening component, on functional mobility, gait and quality of life in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). The rationale for a study of this type stems from the hypothesis that treadmill training may act as an external "pacemaker" and enhance some properties of gait. There is a need for larger scale randomized controlled trials comparing the effects of treadmill training to control groups that receive similar amounts of attention. To date, no study has combined TT and muscle strengthening, likely the optimal form of therapy. A kinesiologist supervises the training, 3 times per week, for a total of 72 one-hour exercise sessions. It is hypothesized that at the end of 6 months, treadmill training will considerably improve walking parameters and the well being of people with PD.

Conditions

• Parkinson's Disease

Interventions

OTHER

Walking on treadmill

3 sessions/week, 24 weeks. The heart rate does not exceed 75% of maximum heart rate (220-age) of the participant and that blood pressure does not exceed 250/115 mmHg. During the first week, the TT velocity was adjusted to 80% of preferential walking speed of the participant. The following week, the participant was encouraged to reach 90% and 100% in the third week. From the fourth week, subjects in the Speed TT had an increase in speed, depending on exercise tolerance of each participant. The TT velocity was increased by 0,2 km/h when the participant reached criteria.

OTHER

Walking on treadmill

3 sessions/week, 24 weeks. The heart rate does not exceed 75% of maximum heart rate (220-age) of the participant and that blood pressure does not exceed 250/115 mmHg. During the first week, the TT velocity was adjusted to 80% of preferential walking speed of the participant. The following week, the participant was encouraged to reach 90% and 100% in the third week. From the fourth week, the TT velocity was increased by 0,2 km/h or the incline of the walking surface of TT was increased by 1% alternately when the progression criteria were met.

OTHER

Control group

Training of the control group was characterized by light intensity exercises. For the first three months, participants performed regular exercise involving full range of motion to enhance their flexibility. For the last three months of the training programme, participants learned elements of Tai Chi and rhythmic movements of latin dance. Participants attended two 1-h supervised sessions per week and were asked to perform each week a third session at home, based on instructions in a document offered to the control group participants

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Laval University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Philippe Corbeil · Laval University

• Alexandra Nadeau · Laval University

• Emmanuelle Pourcher · Quebec Memory and Motor Skills Disorders Research Center

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

40 Years

Max Age

80 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2010-10-31

Primary Completion

2011-06-30

Completion

2012-03-31

Countries

• Canada

Study Locations