Parkinson's Disease Eval and Intervention

Question 1

Name some postural control and balance functional tests commonly used with PD patients.

Answer 1

BERG, Functional reach, Tug, DGI, BESTest, MiniBEST
4-square step test
360 turn test
ABC scale, history of falls questionnaire

Question 2

What are some functional movements you want to check with PD patients?

Answer 2

Bed mobility
Sit-Stand (5 time or 30 second)
Transfers

Question 3

How can you assess fatigue in PD patients?

Answer 3

Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI)20 item self report

Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) 9 item rating scale

Question 4

What needs to happen to systolic and diastolic BP in order to be considered orthostatic hypotension?

Answer 4

Drop in systolic of 20 mmHg
Drop in dastolic 10 mmHG
Either of those plus 10-20% increase in pulse rate

Question 5

What are some disease specific outcome measures for PD?

Answer 5

Profile of Function and Impairment Level Experience (Profile PD) - 0-4 scale, test relates to deficits in body systems and cognitive/emotional factors
Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39) - Scores 8 dimensions

Question 6

Name some good strategies to use with interventions for PD patients.

Answer 6

Large # of reps
Have pt give full attention to desired movement
closed environment
Small cognitive demands
Break things into parts
Blocked practice is best
Focused consistent verbal instruction

Question 7

How often should you complete flexibility exercises for PD patients?

Answer 7

2-3 days a week minimum

ideally 5-7 days

Question 8

How often should you do strength training?

Answer 8

2 days per week on non consecutive days