A Safe and Feasible Online Dance Intervention for Older Adults With and Without Parkinson’s Disease

Abstract

Introduction: Dancing is one way of maintaining an active lifestyle, and online dance interventions in group settings can be a solution when in-person classes are impossible. This study investigated the feasibility and potential clinical effects of an online dance program for older adults with and without Parkinson disease (PD). Methods: Participants attended 2 weekly dance classes in the same videoconference room for 2 months. The dance activities were mainly performed while seated (around 75%). Researchers monitored feasibility (ie, adherence, attendance, and technological barriers) and safety. Pre- and post-intervention assessments investigated self-perceptions, effects on emotional domains, quality of life, activity-specific balance confidence, lower-limb functional mobility, and PD non-motor symptoms. Individuals also reported their self-perceptions regarding technology usability, enjoyment, and social interaction. Results: Most of the participants with PD (n = 12) had moderate PD (Hoehn & Yahr score) and presented a greater risk of falls when compared to participants without PD (n = 14). Overall, we found a high rate of adherence (100%), attendance (87.5%-91.7%), and safety (100%) for both groups. No falls or near-falls occurred during the sessions. Only the PD group ameliorated emotional domains (anxiety and depression) and improved lower-limb functional mobility. All participants reported feeling safe and perceived benefits, although over a third of older adults with PD reported moderate difficulties in using technology and in socializing with the group. Conclusion: This online dance protocol is feasible, safe, and a potential strategy to improve clinical parameters in older adults and people with moderate PD.

Telerehabilitation by Videoconferencing for Balance and Gait in People with Parkinson’s Disease: A Scoping Review

“…Although 14 studies [8,10,16,19,[25][26][27][28][57][58][59][60][61][62] used telerehabilitation by videoconferencing for PD, of these, only 7 studies [8,10,19,[25][26][27][28] used videoconferencing to both assess and treat balance and gait, as demonstrated in Table 1. Although no study has investigated the implementation of wearable technology into telerehabilitation programs to assess and treat balance and gait remotely, we also created a search term to evaluate this Although 14 studies [8,10,16,19,[25][26][27][28][57][58][59][60][61][62] used telerehabilitation by videoconferencing for PD, of these, only 7 studies [8,10,19,[25][26][27][28] used videoconferencing to both assess and treat balance and gait, as demonstrated in Table 1. Although no study has investigated the implementation of wearable technology into telerehabilitation programs to assess and treat balance ...…”

A Systematic Review of the Effects of Interactive Telerehabilitation with Remote Monitoring and Guidance on Balance and Gait Performance in Older Adults and Individuals with Neurological Conditions

“…Table 1 lists the characteristics of the individuals in the 17 studies selected: older adults [23][24][25]; individuals with acute or chronic stroke [26][27][28][29][30][31]; individuals with Parkinson's disease [32][33][34][35][36][37][38]; and individuals with multiple sclerosis [38,39]. One study with individuals with Parkinson's disease had older adults as a control group [37], and 2 studies had no control or comparison group [25,39]. The remaining 14 studies included remote intervention and control or comparison groups and individuals with identical characteristics [23,24,[26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36]38].…”

“…Table 1 lists the characteristics of the 17 studies. With the exception of 4 [25,29,34,39], 13 were either clinical or randomized controlled trials [23,24,[26][27][28][30][31][32][33][35][36][37][38] with intervention and control or comparison groups. Of the 17 studies, 7, 6, and 4 used custom-built telerehabilitation systems or programs [23][24][25][26]29,34,36], commercially available or accessible videoconferencing systems [27,28,32,33,35,37], and commercially available telerehabilitation systems [30,31,38,39], respectively.…”

“…In the 17 studies, balance and gait-related exercises included: static postural adaptation on firm and foam surfaces; dynamic postural adaptation involving the upper extremities, trunk, pelvis, hip, knees, and ankles; weight shifting; flexion-extension at shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle joints); and leg-raising, stepping, turning, making transfers involving the whole body, trunk, and upper or lower extremities (i.e., sit-to-stand, squat, walk, and dance). In total, 6 studies delivered exercises via VR [26,31,34,36,38,39], 5 delivered via smartphone or tablet apps [23][24][25]29,30], and 6 delivered via videoconferencing [27,28,32,33,35,37]. Of the 11 studies using VR, smartphone, or tablet apps, 6 used exergames [25,26,29,36,38,39].…”

“…Of the 17, 2 studies included collaborative telerehabilitation regimens involving caregivers [27] and neurologists, nurses, counsellors, and caregivers [35]. Videoconferencing was the most common telerehabilitation provider of feedback and instructions [25,27,28,[30][31][32][33][34][35]37,39]. The control or comparison groups received usual care [27,35,36] or conventional rehabilitation at home [23,24,30,37,38], in a clinic [26,28,33], or in class [32].…”