Article

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the progressively increasing external auditory cues
during mobility training with persons with Parkinson's disease (PD). DESIGN:
Experimental. SETTING: General community. PARTICIPANTS: Convenience sample of
persons with PD (N=12) who walked independently. INTERVENTIONS: Gait training to external auditory cues was based on a participant's comfortable walking pace.
Training external auditory cues rates were increased if patients were able to
maintain or increase stride length with increasing external auditory cues rate.
Movement synchronization was not monitored during training. Participants trained
for 30min/session, 3 sessions/wk, for 8 weeks. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Walking
velocity, stride length, and cadence. RESULTS: Participants trained at a mean
maximal rate of 157bpm. They showed a significant (P<.01) increase in walking
velocity, stride length, and cadence after 8 weeks of training. CONCLUSIONS:
Walking velocity, stride length, and cadence can significantly improve when
community-dwelling persons with PD participate in progressive mobility training.

Langue : ANGLAIS