December 2011
van Nimwegen M, Speelman
AD, Hofman-van Rossum EJ, Overeem S, Deeg DJ, Borm GF, van der Horst MH, Bloem
BR, Munneke M
Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) are likely to become physically
inactive, because of their motor, mental, and emotional symptoms.
However, specific studies on physical activity in PD are scarce, and
results are conflicting. Here, we quantified daily physical activities
in a large cohort of PD patients and another large cohort of matched
controls. Moreover, we investigated the influence of disease-related
factors on daily physical activities in PD patients.
Daily physical
activity data of PD patients (n = 699) were collected in the
ParkinsonNet trial and of controls (n = 1,959) in the Longitudinal Aging
Study Amsterdam (LASA); data were determined using the LAPAQ, a
validated physical activity questionnaire. In addition, variables that
may affect daily physical activities in PD were recorded, including
motor symptoms, depression, disability in daily life, and comorbidity.
Patients were physically less active; a reduction of 29% compared to
controls (95% CI, 10-44%). Multivariate regression analyses demonstrated
that greater disease severity, gait impairment, and greater disability
in daily living were associated with less daily physical activity in PD
(R2 = 24%).
In this large study, we show that PD patients are about
one-third less active compared to controls. While disease severity,
gait, and disability in daily living predicted part of the inactivity, a
portion of the variance remained unexplained, suggesting that
additional determinants may also affect daily physical activities in PD.
Because physical inactivity has many adverse consequences, work is
needed to develop safe and enjoyable exercise programs for patients with
PD.
