Effects of the Team Approach Rehabilitation Program on Balance, Gait, and Muscle Strength of Lower Extremities for Elderly Patients with Parkinson's Disease

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper was to verify effects of the team approach rehabilitation program on balance, gait, and muscle strength of lower extremities of elderly people with Parkinson's disease. METHODS: Subjects of this paper were 40 elderly people with Parkinson's disease, 20 control and experimental groups respectively, who could walk independently and were less than the 2.5 Hoehn &Yahr stage. The team approach rehabilitation program was applied to the experimental group for 12 weeks. RESULTS: There was significant decrease in second at timed up &go test (p=.008), but no significant difference in reach length at functional reach test (p=.201) with partial improvement of balance. There was no significant difference in second at 10-meter walk test (p=.070), but showed tendency of improvement of gait. And number of times at 30s-chair stand test, indicating muscle strength on lower extremities, increased significantly (p=.029). CONCLUSION: The team approach rehabilitation program has demonstrated its effectiveness on improving balance, and muscle strength of lower extremities for the elderly with Parkinson's disease.