Metronome in Parkinson's disease

Effects of visual and auditory cues on gait in individuals with Parkinson's disease

“…In contrast, Enzensberger et al [17] reported significantly greater gait speed and stride length for PD patients using auditory cues. The difference between their study compared with results from Richards et al [23] and the present study may have been due to methodological differences in the state of medication for the patients or the methods for determining the rate of speed for cuing [17,30].…”

“…Cueing techniques such as musical beats, metronomes or rhythmic clapping have been implemented as strategies for improving gait for PD patients [8,13 -16]. Enzensberger et al [17] found metronome stimulation significantly reduced the time and number of steps to complete a walking course, compared to uncued walking and also reduced the number of freezing episodes from three to zero during turns. The use of a metronome is clinically appealing because it is easy to use, portable and relatively inexpensive [17].…”

An evaluation of self-administration of auditory cueing to improve gait in people with Parkinson’s disease

“…Consistent with earlier studies, gait speed, cadence, and stride length in our subjects improved with the auditory pacer. In studies that investigated single sessions, rhythmic auditory cues have been associated with increases in gait speed, 2,6,15,16 cadence, 2,6,15 and stride length. 1,16 An auditory cue provided by a metronome beat 25% faster than normal gait cadence improved gait speed in individuals with PD significantly while the subjects were “off” medication.…”

The Ronnie Gardiner Rhythm and Music Method – a feasibility study in Parkinson’s disease

“…Rhythm is a powerful stimulus for activity and several studies have shown that therapies including rhythm are beneficial for patients with PD [6,[19][20][21][22]. In addition, it has been suggested that music may affect the reward system of the brain [23].…”