The effects of upper limb swing on gait in people with Parkinson's Disease

• Grant number: 15/22141-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): March 01, 2016
• Effective date (End): December 31, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Physical Education
• Principal Investigator: Lilian Teresa Bucken Gobbi
• Grantee: Vinicius Cavassano Zampier
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease which causes movement disorders such as postural instability and deficit on gait. Although the reduction in upper limbs swing during gait is a common sign in PD, there are few studies investigating this phenomenon. In addition, the reduction in the arms swing is related to an increase in the number of falls, showing that there is an important relation between upper limb control and postural stability during gait. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of arm swing amplitude and frequency on gait performance in patients with PD and healthy individuals. In this study, 20 patients with PD, classified into the stages 1 to 3 according to Hoehn & Yahr scale, and 20 healthy individuals will be enrolled. Participants will be invited to walk 10 meters in 4 experimental conditions: (I) walking at preferred speed (no instructions about upper limbs swing amplitude and frequency). (II) walking with increased amplitude of the upper limbs swing. (III) walking with increased frequency of the upper limbs swing . (IV) walking with the upper limbs attached to the trunk (no upper limb swing). Five trials for each experimental condition will be performed in a randomized order. Accelerometer and an electronic pressure sensitive carpet will be used for gait analyses. The data will be statistically processed using descriptive statistics and the comparison between conditions and groups will be carried out through two-way ANOVA (group x condition).

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

ZAMPIER, VINICIUS C.; VITORIO, RODRIGO; BERETTA, VICTOR S.; JAIMES, DIEGO A. R.; ORCIOLI-SILVA, DIEGO; SANTOS, PAULO C. R.; GOBBI, LILIAN T. B.. Gait bradykinesia and hypometria decrease as arm swing frequency and amplitude increase. Neuroscience Letters, v. 687, p. 248-252, NOV 20 2018. (16/00503-0, 15/22141-0, 14/22308-0)