Nature-based Therapy Program for Parkinson's Disease (PARC)

Université du Québec à Chicoutimi

Status

Completed

Conditions

Chronic Disease

Aging Problems

Parkinson Disease

Fall Patients

Treatments

Other: PARC program

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT06452043

2024-1664

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a nature-based program has positive effects on the physical and psychosocial health in a group of participants with Parkinson's disease. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Will the program improve:

The physical outcomes such as mobility, strength and balance?
The psychosocial health outcomes?

Participants will:

Be assessed before and after the program;
Participate in one session per week of the intervention.

Full description

The chronic and neurodegenerative disease of Parkinson's (PD) is often characterized by movement and balance disorders, which are accompanied by an increased risk of falls. Falls are one of the most common problems that can lead to subsequent injuries (e.g., femoral head fracture) and associated mortality rates. Falls are frequent, debilitating, and have deleterious effects on self-confidence and the quality of life of individuals with PD. Additionally, according to Parkinson Canada, a high proportion of individuals living with this disease suffer from depression and/or anxiety. Therefore, it is essential to implement intervention programs aimed at improving the physical and functional capacity as well as the well-being of this population to prevent falls and promote sustainable health.

In recent years, an increasing number of studies have demonstrated the benefits of contact with nature on the physical and mental health of individuals. Specific and positive effects on psychological symptoms (e.g., depression) as well as cognition (memory) in adults have also been shown according to this recent evidence. This stimulates our research team to test the effects of a physical intervention in nature on the physical and mental health of individuals suffering from PD. One of the perspectives of this new intervention in nature is also to evaluate its impact on fall risks in this population. The ultimate goal of this project is to contribute to the sustainable health of the population.

The overall objective of this project, based on a pilot study, is to assess the effects of an 8-week nature-based intervention program on the physical and mental health of individuals with PD. Various physical measures (mobility, strength, and balance) and mental measures (level of depression, stress) will be studied in this project to better understand the effects of this type of intervention.

Enrollment

11 patients

Sex

All

Ages

45 to 85 years old

Volunteers

No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

diagnosed with Parkinson's disease (while medicated: ON);
capable of walking independently;
presenting mild to moderate disability symptoms according to the Hoehn and Yahr scale (stages 1-3);
having a frailty score of less than 2/5 (Fried);
having a cognitive status ≥26 based on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) questionnaire.

Exclusion criteria

Cancer;
Red flags (infection, tumor, etc.);
Severe psychiatric disorders;
Palliative care;
Severe systemic syndromes or diseases that may prevent tests and exercises from being performed;
Stroke - very acute phase (1 week) and this until medial hemodynamic stability.