Three Months of Partnered Dance Aerobic Exercise Can Reduce OFF-time and Enhance Quality of Life in Older Adults with Parkinson's Disease.

Introduction: Parkinson's Disease (PD) is commonly treated with the dopamine precursor, levodopa, which is used in antiparkinsonian therapy. After several years of taking this medication, many individuals with PD experience medication-related motor fluctuations (MRMF), a.k.a., OFF-time. OFF-time is one of the most disconcerting features of PD when troubling motor and non-motor symptoms previously alleviated by levodopa return. Exercise, specifically dance, could beneficially address OFF-time and enhance quality of life (QOL) and independence in people with PD.

Methods: This assessor-blinded randomized controlled trial (1:1) [NCT04122690] included 45 participants with PD (70.1±7.27 years, 73% male, 2.30±0.61 Hoehn & Yahr stage), who were randomized into 30 hours of PDAE or WALK over 3 months. Psychosocial questionnaires, MDS-UPDRS, and 3-day OFF-state diaries were administered at baseline and three-month timepoints to measure reported OFF-time, QOL, independence, and disease severity. Within-group comparisons were analyzed using paired t-tests, and between-group comparisons were analyzed using independent t-tests and a linear mixed-effects model.

Results: After three months, PDAE reduced OFF-time and improved motor symptoms. Compared to WALK, PDAE also reduced OFF-time, improved motor symptoms, and enhanced the experience of daily living.

Conclusion: PDAE is superior to WALK and is an effective adjunctive therapy to help improve OFF-time and QOL in individuals with PD after three months. Further studies are needed to determine the relationship between improving OFF-time and quality of life.