Innovative Treatment for Parkinson’s Disease Can Improve Quality Life

If you or someone you love was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, you may be wondering what you can do to be proactive and effectively manage the symptoms. While Parkinson’s does not have a cure, starting healing treatment and therapy soon after diagnosis can drastically help improve the quality of life for those with Parkinson’s disease.

What Is Parkinson’s Disease?

Parkinson’s disease is a brain-based movement disorder that negatively affects the ability to perform daily activities by causing body tremors, stiffness in the limbs and trunk, slowness of movement, and impaired balance and coordination. It also causes many secondary symptoms that can affect the quality of life, such as difficulty sleeping, anxiety, depression, fatigue, numbness, burning sensations, and chronic pain.

Parkinson’s occurs because of an imbalance of dopamine in the brain. Dopamine is essential for movement because it acts as a transmitter for signals from the brain to other parts of the body. There is no known cause for Parkinson’s disease, although a family history may increase your risk.

Therapy for Parkinson’s Disease

Treatment for Parkinson’s disease may include dopamine replacements, dietary changes, brain stimulation, and rehabilitation therapy. Therapeutic treatment at a rehabilitation center helps improve Parkinson’s symptoms by promoting a wider range of motion so that patients can better perform daily tasks and by improving posture, gait, and communication skills through a diverse program that includes physical, occupational, and speech therapy.

Two of the most innovative programs used in healing rehabilitation therapy for Parkinson’s disease include LSVT BIG and LSVT LOUD.

LSVT BIG

LSVT BIG is a research-based physical and occupational therapy that addresses the symptoms of Parkinson’s and helps those affected by the disease perform everyday tasks more effectively. People with Parkinson’s often move differently, and the intensive one-on-one treatment with a certified therapist helps them use their body more normally by focusing on walking, balance, and activities of daily living.

LSVT BIG works by teaching individuals with Parkinson’s to use extra effort to produce bigger motions. When a person with Parkinson’s moves, the motion is slow because the reduced amount of dopamine in the brain doesn’t allow them to move as easily. Through LSVT BIG, they learn how to create normal movements by using exaggerated movements.

Some of the symptoms addressed include:

• Slow movement
• Mobility challenges, such as difficulty getting out of a chair or bed
• Poor balance
• Changes in ability to perform fine motor tasks, such as writing or buttoning a shirt

Some of the benefits of LSVT BIG include:

• Faster walking and bigger steps
• Improved balance
• Increased flexibility
• Improvement of the ability to perform tasks of daily living, such as self-care and home management tasks

LSVT LOUD

LSVT LOUD is a highly effective, research-based speech therapy that improves communication-related symptoms associated with Parkinson’s and other neurological conditions. Eighty to ninety percent of those with Parkinson’s experience problems with speech that begin in the early stages of the disease. People with Parkinson’s may find that their voice is no longer as loud, their articulation is no longer as clear, or their voice has become more monotone. If not properly treated, these communication changes can progress and worsen, negatively affecting quality of life.

This innovative therapy with a certified speech and language pathologist helps patients effectively increase the volume of their speech, improve articulation and intelligibility, and be more expressive so that they are more easily understood when communicating.

Some of the symptoms addressed include:

• Soft voice
• Mumbled speech
• Monotone speech
• Hoarse voice

Some of the benefits of LSVT LOUD include:

• Improved vocal volume
• Increased facial expression
• Improved speech intelligibility
• Improved self-confidence

Parkinson’s Treatment at Christian Health Outpatient Rehabilitation

In 2023, we received a grant from the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation to expand our programs and services to help even more people living with Parkinson's. At our Outpatient Rehabilitation, we offer specialized therapy for those with Parkinson’s, including LSVT BIG and LOUD treatment. We have three therapists on our team who are certified in these innovative therapies and offer personalized, one-on-one care to help you:

• Maintain optimal function and mobility
• Learn how to incorporate the bigger movements into your daily routine
• Get resources and recommendations for any home modifications and adaptive equipment necessary to optimize your safety and independence

To learn more about how this healing therapy can help you, please call Jane Mendoza, Director of Outpatient Rehabilitation, at (201) 848-5518 or OutPatientRehab@ChristianHealthNJ.org or visit ChristianHealthNJ.info/Rehabilitation.