NCT01544738

Sensory Stimulation Effect on Movement Speed in Patients With Parkinson Disease

Aponeurotic Stimulation Effect on Parkinson Bradykinesia

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 11 (actual)
• Sponsor: Université Libre de Bruxelles · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: —
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Movement slowness (bradykinesia) is one of the main motor symptoms in Parkinson Disease (PD). Several studies have shown that patients with PD exhibit slowness because they are unable to modulate, in an optimal way, the velocity of voluntary motor acts not induced by external stimulation. Indeed, these patients have difficulties to integrate multi-sensorial information, mainly proprioception. The investigators investigated changes in shoulder velocity during pointing movements by patients with PD after stimulation of soft tissues (aponeurosis) of upper limb muscles. The stimulation consisted of manipulating, with a hook (the diacutaneous fibrolysis method), the aponeurotic tissues enrobing the heads of the upper limb muscles. This technique has previously been shown to decrease passive tension and the tendon reflex response of the manipulated muscle group. The investigators hypothesis is that aponeurotic manipulation of shoulder muscles therefore creates a modification in the proprioceptive information, which in return temporarily decreases the bradykinesia of shoulder movements.

Conditions

• Parkinson Disease

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Aponeurotic stimulation (the diacutaneous fibrolysis method)	Treatment consisted of manipulating, with a hook, the aponeurotic tissues enrobing the heads of the upper-limb muscles. The manipulation consisted of back and forth mobilization, applied perpendicularly to the axis of the muscular fibers. The mobilization is performed with both hands; the therapist's non-dominant hand performs a manual mobilization whereas the dominant hand follows the movement with the hook. The hook allows the therapist to be very precise about the location of the tissues that are stretched. This stretch is realized at the level of the aponeurotic fibers presenting the greatest resistance to perpendicular movement. The shape of the hook is chosen to avoid discomfort or pain during manipulation. To spread the pressure exerted by the spatula on a very local point, it is important to fill completely the curved part of the hook with the adjacent soft tissues. We manipulated muscle from the proximal insertion towards the distal, giving special attention to the tendons.
OTHER	Placebo stimulation	Placebo stimulation (PS) consisted of manipulating the skin along the same paths over the trunk, shoulder and arm muscles that were the targets for treatment in the AS group

Timeline

• Start date: 2008-11-01
• Primary completion: 2009-05-01
• First posted: 2012-03-06
• Last updated: 2012-03-06

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Belgium