What Is Body Weight Support for Parkinson’s Disease?

Background Body weight support for Parkinson’s is an innovative rehabilitation method in which patients are provided with partial body weight reduction during gait training to improve walking ability.

Parkinsons disease is a nervous system disorder that often affects movement.

Common symptoms include:

• Slow movement
• Balance problems
• Short walking steps
• Difficulty starting movement
• Freezing during walking
• Reduced posture control

This is why most Parkinson’s patients have problems with walking in their day-to-day life.

A body weight support system delivers partial unweighting via a supportive harness coupled with an overhead suspension mechanism.

Consequently, the patients can safely practice ambulatory training with more confidence.

Therapists can also adapt levels of support in accordance with progression of the disease.

Modern systems of body weight support with a combination of subclasses:

• Rehabilitation treadmills
• Safety harness systems
• Adjustable support technology
• Intelligent monitoring functions

Hence, they are used to provide organized gait retraining for Parkinson’s patients.

Jamore Medical, a developer of advanced rehabilitation devices for hospitals and therapy centers around the world.

Website:

https://jamoremed.com/

Rehabilitation of Gait in Parkinson’s patients

Parkinson’s disease affects movement control.

Walking styles thus seldom remain static over time.

Several patients have multiple gait defects.

2.1 Shortened Step Length

One of the common traits among patients with Parkinson’s is their smaller steps.

Therefore, walking efficiency decreases.

In addition, short steps are already a fall risk.

2.2 Freezing of Gait

Some patients just stop in their tracks while they are walking.

This problem often appears when:

• Turning corners
• Passing through narrow spaces
• Starting movement

Patients therefore require somewhat specifically focused gait training.

2.3 Balance Problems

Parkinson’s disease affects postural control.

Hence, it may be challenging for patients to not be able to remain stable.

This makes fall prevention and concern.

2.4 Reduced Walking Speed

Due to modified control of muscles, movement gets slower.

As a result, tasks that were once simple become more challenging.

The Recovery of a Parkinson’s disease with Body Weight Support

There are numerous rehabilitation benefits of using body weight support.

3.1 Ensures Safety in the Walking Environment

Parkinson’s patients often fear falling.

So they might steer clear of exercise.

It also allows for weight bearing support.

This, in turn, allows patients to feel more relaxed while performing walking exercises.

3.2 Improves Walking Practice

Walking recovery→ needs to repeat movement training.

At the same time, Parkinson’s symptoms can restrict the intensity of exercise.

The physical difficulty is reduced by body weight support.

Thus, patients perform more walking repetitions.

3.3 Supports Balance Training

One of the major goals of rehabilitation is balance control.

It helps improve the stability of exercises with the support system.

This allows patients to focus on postural and movement control.

3.4 Encourages Better Gait Patterns

People with Parkinsons also develop unusual ways of walking.

So the best medicine for wrong movement patterns is repetitive conditioning.

Furthermore, therapists have the ability to gradually tailor support.

Thus, patients gain walking quality.

3.5 Supports Motor Learning

Repetition of walking creates the condition for your nervous system to adapt.

Accordingly, gait training on a regular basis promotes movements via consistent training.