Evidence Supports PA Prescription for Parkinson’s Disease: Motor Symptoms and Non-Motor Features: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, which relates to not only motor symptoms, but also cognitive, autonomic, and mood impairments. The literature suggests that pharmacological or surgical treatment has a limited effect on providing relief of the symptoms and also restricting its progression. Recently, research on non-pharmacological interventions for people living with PD (pwPD) that alleviate their motor and non-motor features has shown a new aspect in treating this complex disease. Numerous studies are supporting exercise intervention as being effective in both motor and non-motor facets of PD, such as physical functioning, strength, balance, gait speed, and cognitive impairment. Via the lens of the physical profession, this paper strives to provide another perspective for PD treatment by presenting exercise modes categorized by motor and non-motor PD symptoms, along with its effects and mechanisms. Acknowledging that there is no “one size fits all” exercise prescription for such a variable and progressive disease, this review is to outline tailored physical activities as a credible approach in treating pwPD, conceivably enhancing overall physical capacity, ameliorating the symptoms, reducing the risk of falls and injuries, and, eventually, elevating the quality of life. It also provides references and practical prescription applications for the clinician.

Erratum: Cheng, Y.-C., et al. Evidence Supports PA Prescription for Parkinson’s Disease: Motor Symptoms and Non-Motor Features: A Scoping Review. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 2894

“…The authors wish to make the following corrections to their paper published in IJERPH [ 1 ]: authors’ affiliation.…”

Dementia and Physical Therapy

“…The first is that cognitive impairment in people with PD can appear in the early stages of the disease, and on the other hand, mild cognitive impairment represents a significant risk factor for early dementia [10]. Recently published systematic reviews have been summarized that physical therapy has a positive effect on global cognitive function, processing speed, sustained attention, mental flexibility, visuospatial, and executive functions in people with Parkinson's disease [10,[18][19][20][21], besides motor function. However, the main function benefiting from the different physical training is the executive and global cognitive function measured through different cognitive screening (Figure 1).…”

A Randomized Controlled Trial of Motor Imagery Combined with Virtual Reality Techniques in Patients with Parkinson’s Disease

“…The primary goal of physical rehabilitation is to assist people with neurological conditions to regain their independence by learning new motor skills and regaining lost motor skills with an increasing emphasis on a client-centered approach [ 8 , 9 , 10 ]. Non-pharmacological therapy such as exercise programming has been shown to increase strength, physical functioning, quality of life, balance, and gait speed in PD patients [ 10 , 11 ].…”

“…The primary goal of physical rehabilitation is to assist people with neurological conditions to regain their independence by learning new motor skills and regaining lost motor skills with an increasing emphasis on a client-centered approach [ 8 , 9 , 10 ]. Non-pharmacological therapy such as exercise programming has been shown to increase strength, physical functioning, quality of life, balance, and gait speed in PD patients [ 10 , 11 ]. PD patients have benefited from the wide range of exercises that are available, including stretching, progressive exercises, aerobic training, relaxation exercises, strength and balance exercises, and treadmill walking, all of which have been studied [ 11 ].…”