The Effects of High Velocity Movement Therapy in Decreasing Fall Risk in a Patient with Parkinson\u27s Disease: A Case Study

Falls can be devastating to the health and wellbeing of patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). 60.5% of patients with PD have at least one fall and 39% have recurrent falls. Previous studies have shown high velocity movement therapy have had positive results in treating patients with PD. The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy of high velocity movement therapy in decreasing fall risk in patients with PD. This case report revolved around a 76 year old male diagnosed with PD in 2010. Patient presented with traditional parkinsonian symptoms and had no history of falls. The patient was treated in six treatment sessions with emphasis on high velocity exercises and gait training. Tests and measures used included Tinetti balance tool, Timed Up and Go (TUG), single leg stance time (SLS), and tandem stance time. He increased his Tinetti score by 6 points, decreased his TUG time by 1.36 seconds, and increased his tandem stance time to over one minute on bilateral legs on a compliant surface. SLS time did not change following therapy. The patient’s improvements in the Tinetti and TUG were encouraging thou were not deemed statistically significant. The tandem stance time was the only measurement that increased significantly indicating a decrease in fall risk. Though the patient outcomes were only mildly improved this study provides evidence that high velocity movement therapy can decrease the fall risk in a patient with Parkinson’s diseas