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Comparison of spatiotemporal and angular parameters during shallow water walking in different immersion depths by older adults with and without Parkinson's disease.

Gait & posture
September 1, 2024
Andressa Fiori Bortoli et al. (5 authors)
Journal ArticleComparative StudyHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to compare the biomechanical responses of shallow water walking between older adults with Parkinson's disease and age-matched healthy individuals.

Results Summary

Both groups reduced walking speed similarly with increased immersion depth, but Parkinson's patients achieved this by decreasing stride frequency and length. The Parkinson's group had a shorter contact phase at waist depth, likely due to reduced fall risk and drag force effects, while joint motion range was similar between groups.

Population

Older adults with Parkinson's disease (10 participants) and age-matched healthy individuals (10 participants).

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (7)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
shallow water walking
decrease
walking speed
older adults with and without Parkinson's disease
-
reduced similarly
#1
shallow water walking
decrease
stride frequency
older adults with Parkinson's disease
-
reducing both
#2
shallow water walking
decrease
stride length
older adults with Parkinson's disease
-
reducing both
#3
shallow water walking
decrease
contact phase
older adults with Parkinson's disease
-
had lower
#4
shallow water walking
no change
total range of joint motion
older adults with and without Parkinson's disease
-
was similar
#5
shallow water walking
decrease
peak angular speed of ankle
older adults with and without Parkinson's disease
-
reduced
#6
shallow water walking
decrease
peak angular speed of knee
older adults with and without Parkinson's disease
-
reduced
#7
Abstract

BACKGROUND: People with Parkinson's Disease (PwPD) have motor symptoms that directly interfere on dry land walking performance. Despite the shallow water walking is a viable and beneficial physical intervention for PwPD, it lacks information on the comparison of the biomechanical responses of the shallow water walking by PwPD and age paired healthy individuals. RESEARCH QUESTION: Are there differences in the spatiotemporal and angular responses of shallow water walking by older adults with and without Parkinson's disease? METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, ten older adults (9 men/1 women) with Parkinson disease (PwPD group) and ten older adults (3 men/7 women) without Parkinson's disease (Older group) walked in shallow water at self-selected comfortable speed on pool floor in the immersion depths of waist and xiphoid levels. The 2D kinematic data from the sagittal plane was collected to calculate the walking speed, stride length, stride frequency, duty factor, walk ratio, lower limb joints' range of motion and peak angular speed RESULTS: Both groups reduced similarly the walking speed with the immersion depth increase. The speed decrease was achieved by a reducing both the stride frequency and stride length only in the PwPD. The PwPD had lower contact phase than Older in the waist depth, probably due to the reduced risk of fall in water immersion and to attenuate drag force effects. The total range of joint motion was similar between groups, while the peak angular speed of ankle and knee reduced in the deeper depth in both groups. SIGNIFICANCE: The present findings can help professionals of aquatic rehabilitation to choose the best depth for exercise programs, according to the treatment objectives. To our knowledge, this was the first study that analyzed spatiotemporal and angular variables during shallow water walking of PwPD at different depths and compared them with older people without Parkinson's disease.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
HumansMaleFemaleParkinson DiseaseAgedCross-Sectional StudiesWalkingBiomechanical PhenomenaImmersionWaterRange of Motion, ArticularWalking SpeedCase-Control StudiesMiddle AgedSpatio-Temporal Analysis
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy75/10
Quality70/10
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.05
Weight Score2.25
Normalized Score0.64
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