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Nordic Walking and Walking in Parkinson's disease: a randomized single-blind controlled trial.

Aging clinical and experimental research
April 1, 2021
Serena Granziera et al. (5 authors)
Journal ArticleRandomized Controlled TrialHuman StudyClinical
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to compare the effects of Nordic Walking versus regular Walking on motor and non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease patients.

Results Summary

Both Nordic Walking and regular Walking improved motor and non-motor symptoms, including balance, fatigue, anxiety, and quality of life, but Nordic Walking was not superior to regular Walking.

Population

Parkinson's disease patients at Hoehn and Yahr stages 2-3.

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

8 weeks

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (9)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
Nordic Walking
no change
all considered outcomes
Parkinson's disease patients at a Hoehn and Yahr stage between 2 and 3
-
failed to show any difference compared to the control group (Walking)
#1
Nordic Walking
no change
-
the studied population
-
was not superior compared to Walking
#2
Moderate intensity outdoor group activities like Nordic Walking and Walking
increase
motor and non-motor symptoms parameters
patients with Parkinson's disease
-
seem to improve
#3
Nordic Walking vs. Walking
increase
global motor outcome
32 patients who ended the study period
p 0.001
improvements were observed
#4
Nordic Walking vs. Walking
increase
dynamic and static balance ability
32 patients who ended the study period
p 0.005; p 0.002
improvements were observed
#5
Nordic Walking vs. Walking
increase
global non-motor symptoms outcome
32 patients who ended the study period
p 0.003
improvements were observed
#6
Nordic Walking vs. Walking
increase
fatigue
32 patients who ended the study period
p 0.016
improvements were observed
#7
Nordic Walking vs. Walking
increase
anxiety
32 patients who ended the study period
p 0.043
improvements were observed
#8
Nordic Walking vs. Walking
increase
quality of life
32 patients who ended the study period
p 0.003
improvements were observed
#9
Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Non-pharmacological interventions are increasingly being acknowledged as valuable options to overcome or reduce functional problems in patients with Parkinson's disease. In the last decades, Nordic Walking was employed and investigated by rehabilitation specialists. Clinical trials on the effect of Nordic Walking on motor and non-motor Parkinson's disease symptoms are few, small, and heterogeneous for inclusion criteria and intervention protocols. As a result, Nordic Walking training cannot be recommended as a standard rehabilitative tool in Parkinson's disease patients. METHODS: This randomized controlled single-blind trial recruited Parkinson's disease patients at a Hoehn and Yahr stage between 2 and 3 assigned to a Nordic Walking vs. Walking group. Subjects were extensively assessed for motor and non-motor symptoms at baseline and after 8 weeks of intervention period. To study the effects of intervention on the overall sample, paired-sample t test and Wilcoxon signed rank test were used, while differences between groups were estimated with general linear models repeated-measure and Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS: Among 32 patients who ended the study period, improvements were observed in the following assessments: global motor outcome (p 0.001), dynamic and static balance ability (p 0.005; p 0.002), global non-motor symptoms outcome (p 0.003), fatigue (p 0.016), anxiety (p 0.043), and quality of life (p 0.003). The treatment group (Nordic Walking) failed to show any difference compared to the control group (Walking) in all considered outcomes. CONCLUSION: Nordic Walking was not superior compared to Walking in the studied population. Moderate intensity outdoor group activities like Nordic Walking and Walking seem to improve motor and non-motor symptoms parameters in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Exercise TherapyHumansParkinson DiseaseQuality of LifeSingle-Blind MethodTreatment OutcomeWalking
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy75/10
Quality80/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations20
Citations/Year5.0
Relative Citation Ratio2.55
NIH Percentile81.3%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.95
Weight Score2.60
Normalized Score0.66
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