Effects of a ballet intervention on trunk coordination and range of motion during gait in people with Parkinson’s

Abstract

Background: People with Parkinson’s often move the trunk in a more in-phase pattern with reduced range of motion. No studies to date have assessed changes to trunk coordination after a dance intervention. The present study aimed to determine the effect of weekly ballet classes on trunk coordination and range of motion during gait for people with Parkinson’s. Methods: The study follows a non-randomized, controlled project evaluation design. Two inertial sensors were used to record angular displacement of the pelvis and thorax during a 10 m walk for 19 experimental participants and 13 control participants. Coordination was assessed using cross-correlation of the angular displacement of the two body regions. Results: No significant changes in trunk coordination and range of motion were found across time for both dancing and control groups (p > 0.01). There were also no significant differences between groups on all measures at different time intervals (p > 0.01). Conclusions: The present study did not demonstrate significant effects of a weekly ballet class on trunk coordination and range of motion during gait for people with Parkinson’s. There is a need to determine optimal dance class frequency and appropriate levels of overload to allow for potential physiological improvements.

Keywords

• dance
• parkinson’s
• rigidity
• cross correlation