At–home physiotherapy combined with telemedicine for patients with Parkinson disease

Abstract

To improve the activities of daily living (ADL) of patients with Parkinson disease (PD) living at home, we combined at–home physiotherapy with telemedicine (at–home P with T) to support self–physiotherapy. Here, we report the efficacy of at–home P with T for PD patients. Participants : Subjects were 5 PD patients (aged 60s to 80s ; Hoehn–Yahr severity grade, III–IV ; disease duration, 9–23 years) with gait disturbance, postural deformities, and frozen gait. Methods : After receiving medical information from primary care doctors, we started at–home P with T. A web–based physiotherapy program was matched to each patient. We provided instructions on how to carry out the program daily, gave “visual feedback” by mirror for postural deformities, and shared visual information with the home visit staff and families by telemedicine about once per month. Results : At–home P with T improved the participants' gait and posture without any changes in therapeutic medication. Summary : These findings suggest that at–home P with T can improve the ADL of PD at home.