Author: Zhenlan Li1,2, Tian Wang1, Mengyue Shen3, Tao Song1,4, Jie He1, Wei Guo3, Zhen Wang3, Jie Zhuang1
Affiliation: <sup>1</sup> School of Sport Science, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China.
<sup>2</sup> Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ningbo College of Health Sciences, Ningbo 315100, China.
<sup>3</sup> School of Martial Arts, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China.
<sup>4</sup> School of Physical Education, Jianghan University, Wuhan 430056, China.
Conference/Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health
Date published: 2022 Jun 30
Other:
Volume ID: 19 , Issue ID: 13 , Pages: 8042 , Special Notes: doi: 10.3390/ijerph19138042. , Word Count: 264
The objective of this study was to investigate the therapeutic effect of Wuqinxi Qigong vs. stretching on single- and dual-task gait, motor symptoms, and quality of life in people with mild and moderate Parkinson's disease (PD). This single-blind, randomized control trial included 40 participants with idiopathic PD who were randomized into the Wuqinxi Qigong (WQ) group or stretching group. Participants completed 12 weeks (two sessions/week) of intervention. The primary outcomes were gait parameters when performing single-task (comfortable pace) and dual-task (obstacle crossing, serial-3 subtraction and backward digit span) walking, including gait speed, stride length, and double support percentage. The secondary outcomes were ratings from the Movement Disorder Society Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS), results of the timed-up-and-go test (TUGT), results of the Mini-Balance Evaluation Systems Test (MiniBESTest), and responses from the 39-item Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39). All measures were assessed pre- and post-intervention. The WQ group demonstrated increased gait speed (p = 0.000) during the single task, and increased stride length (p = 0.001, p = 0.021) during the single-task and serial-3 subtraction task. Double support percentage significantly decreased (p = 0.004) in the WQ group during the obstacle crossing task, and also decreased (p = 0.045) in the stretching group during the single-task. TUGT (p = 0.005), MiniBESTest (p = 0.023) and PDQ-39 (p = 0.043) in the WQ group significantly improved, and both groups showed significant improvement in MDS-UPDRS after intervention. Wuqinxi Qigong is an effective method to improve single- and dual-task gait. While both exercises improve motor symptoms, Wuqinxi Qigong results in better mobility, balance and quality of life compared to stretching alone.
Keywords: Parkinson’s disease; Wuqinxi Qigong; dual-task gait; motor symptoms; stretching.
PMID: 35805699 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19138042