Exercise App for Parkinson’s Disease: the SmarTreatment

By buniverse ()

The research in Parkinson disease, across both animal models and in humans, reveals the importance of exercise for the treatment of this condition. Exercise has been shown to reduce disability in Parkinson disease and may have a mitigating effect on [...]disease progression.
The Sargent College Center for Neurorehabilitation (CNR) examined the natural history of walking behavior at the “macro level” in persons with PD and found at 12% reduction in the amount of walking that occurred over a 1-year period. They also found that walking related behaviors seemed to decline faster in comparison to other areas. In response, they developed an exercise program (i.e., strengthening exercises plus walking) focusing on improving walking behavior in order to reduce disability. They use mobile health technology in the form of an exercise application (“app”) so persons with Parkinson can perform the exercises, on a tablet or smartphone, in the convenience of their own homes. Users also wear an activity tracker to monitor steps walked over the course of a day, week, month or year – this data syncs with the “app”. CNR’s team of physical therapists can monitor the data via the “app” and can remotely change the walking goals or the strengthening exercises to make the program more or less challenging or to increase variety to improve motivation. Now persons with PD can access a goal-oriented, individualized exercise program and stay connected to a physical therapist to help foster engagement in exercise over the long-term.
Presented by Terry Ellis.

Hosted by Boston University College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College, this presentation was a part of an online, virtual conference, “Health Matters”, which took place on September 17, 2015.
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