KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE — Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurological condition. The more common manifestations are stooped posture, difficult and slow movements, impaired coordination and balance, freezing and festinating gait.
While a lot of noise was made lately of Parkinson’s disease due to a number of celebrities who were diagnosed with it, or have been suffering from it, and had succumbed to it, this disease is almost always associated with resting tremors, poker face, and a soft speaking voice. All these and more could contribute to a vicious cycle of discomfort, poor sleep quality, depression, and overall decrease in quality of life (QOL).
A multitude of exercise protocols have been developed specifically to address motor and nonmotor manifestations of Parkinson’s disease. However, within the last 10 years, researchers have explored complementary therapies for the Parkinson’s disease population.
One of such therapies is dance. And like our moods, a variety of dances have been studied to address specific deficits and impairments to improve a Parkinson’s patient’s activity participation and his QOL.
To address those previously mentioned and more, the majority of dance therapy in Parkinson’s disease involved either the Irish set or the Argentine tango.
Individuals living with Parkinson’s usually fall backwards. There is likewise a documented predilection toward losing a range of motion in trunk extension and rotation, making activities of daily living difficult.
The rationale for the extensive study of these two dances would have something to do with these functional deficits, and how it involves certain dance steps to address them.
The Argentine Tango has dance steps with focus on backward walking. Also, the overall posture assumed in Tango is that of trunk extension, and the fast-paced transitional movements, especially during turns would have expectedly address the deficits seen in Parkinson’s disease.
The Irish set dance is also a partnered dance, but actually more of a community dance. The side-by-side positioning and the “dancing in circles” steps would have expectedly affect obstacle negotiation, working around tight spaces, and multidirectional movement among the community of other dancers.
As human movement scientists, physical therapists like me are easily drawn toward analyzing movements, and studying the feasibility of adjunct therapies that not only address physical deficits but also positively impacting a patient’s QOL.
Adapting the biopsychosocial model would most likely explain why dance could work in individuals with Parkinson’s. The obligated coordination and development of a rhythm to be visually-pleasing to the dance audience may be one, the camaraderie that dance has to offer versus the regimented exercise protocols, another. But it may be the sense of purpose, learning something new, or doing something that they once loved that best explains the biological plausibility of dance in Parkinson’s disease.
Do not jump the gun just yet! It is imperative that a professional be consulted whether or not you are a good candidate for dance therapy. (The participants in these studies are Stage 2-3 Hoehn & Yahr PD patients). Should a physician give you the go-signal, a physical therapist familiar with dance therapy will be able to initiate your training to untangling them two left feet and more.
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Author’s email: macosta@nhccare.com
