Weekly Dance Classes Slowed Parkinson’s Symptom Progression, Study Shows

Dancing to music can slow symptom progression in patients with mild to moderate Parkinson’s disease (PD), according to recent findings published in Brain Sciences.

“Our results indicate positive benefits of weekly training for stopping disease progression of motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease,” wrote Joseph DeSouza, PhD, UWO, Center for Vision Research, York University, Toronto, Canada. “Previous longitudinal studies suggest an annual decline in motor function whereas our cohort shows that the annual motor impairment is drastically reduced.”

In the first of its kind study, researchers aimed to determine the progression of motor and non-motor symptoms in patients with PD participating in one dance class per week for a period of 3 years.

A total of 32 patients were assessed using the Movement Disorder Society Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale. Sixteen of the patients agreed to weekly participation in a 1 hour and 15 minute dance class for a 3 year period. Sixteen of the patients did not participate in dance classes.

“The dance classes are structured with a myriad of factors in mind such as training intensity, speed of rhythm, symptom-specific concerns related to balance, cognition, motor skill, depression and physical confidence, as well as activity duration and movement patterns,” wrote Dr DeSouza.

Patients with PD participating in the dance classes saw a significant decline in motor and non-motor symptom progression when compared with the non-dancing group including areas related to balance and rigidity, tremors, speech and mood.

While the patient population had an average age of diagnosis of 63.93, patients participating in the dance classes did not see the rapid motor decline typically shown in those who are older than 57 at disease onset. The non-dancing group showed this rapid motor decline.

Following 1000 days of training, patients participating in dancing had a Movement Disorder Society Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale motor score of 19.07, while the non-dancing group had a score of 28.27.

“These findings strongly suggest the benefits of dance in people with PD as a supplement to a normal treatment regimen,” Dr DeSouza et al concluded.

Bearss KA, DeSouza JFX. Parkinson's Disease Motor Symptom Progression Slowed with Multisensory Dance Learning over 3-Years: A Preliminary Longitudinal Investigation. Brain Sci. 2021;11(7):895. Published 2021 Jul 7. doi:10.3390/brainsci11070895