Objective: To analyze the effects of freezing of gait (FoG) and medication on postural adjustments during prolonged standing in individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Background: Even if a quiet standing posture over a prolonged period is a common task in people’s daily life, it can present a higher degree of difficulty for those with balance deficits, such as PD patients.

Method: Ten (5 freezers) individuals with PD maintained a prolonged upright posture for 15 minutes on a force plate in two different conditions related to medication, ON and OFF. Participants were able to change their posture freely at any time, with no specific instructions on how to stand, except the requirement not to take a step. Postural adjustments were classified according to changes in center of pressure (CoP) with specific patterns [1]. The three main alterations in the CoP were identified, which are directly related to postural adjustments performed by the hip, namely: shift, fidget or drift.

Results: In Table 1, we have the result of the CoP values ​​for the Mann-Whitney test, which tested for each condition related to medication (on and off period) the effect of the FoG. Tables 2 and 3 show the CP values ​​for the Wilcoxon test, which investigated the effect of medication of the CP standards for the FOG and NFOG groups independently.

Conclusion: The medication did not interfere with postural adjustments in prolonged standing. Patients with FOG did a greater quantity and with a greater amplitude of postural adjustments in the mediolateral direction, indicating a greater loss in this direction in the postural control.

References: [1] Duarte, M., Zatsiorsky, V.M. Patterns of center of presure migration during prolonged unconstrained standing. Motor Control. 1999; 3, 12-27.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/effects-of-freezing-gait-and-medication-on-postural-control-during-prolonged-standing-in-individuals-with-parkinsons-disease/