Three-year multisensory dance learning slows the progression of motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease: a preliminary longitudinal study.

Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 895. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070895

Commentary

This study investigated the change in symptoms with exercise for people with Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder in which motor dysfunction progresses within five years of diagnosis. It is associated with a 5.2 to 8.9 point reduction in the annual rate of motor decline, according to the Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS).

Therefore, the study was investigating the progression of both motor and non-motor PD symptoms by having the participants attend a dance class once a week for three years.

The MDS-UPDRS score was used for assessment, and longitudinal data from a total of 32 PD patients showed that the rate of daily motor decline in PD-Dancers was zero (slope = 0.000146), indicating no motor impairment, while the PD-Reference group showed the expected motor decline over 3 years (p<0.001). 

Similarly, non-exercise aspects of daily life, experience of daily exercise, and exercise complications did not show a significant decline. A significant group (PD-dancer and PD-reference) by days interaction showed that PDs who train once a week have less motor impairment (M = 18.75) than PD-reference who do not train over time (M = 24.61) (p < 0.05).

Thus, training as indicated by lower MDS-UPDRS scores may be effective in delaying both motor and non-motor PD symptoms over 3 years.