title: The effects of adapted tango on spatial cognition and disease severity in Parkinson's disease.
abstract: The authors determined effects of community-based adapted tango on spatial cognition and disease severity in Parkinson's disease (PD) while controlling for the effects of social interaction. Thirty-three individuals with mild-to-moderate PD (stage I-III) were assigned to twenty 90-min tango (n = 24) or education (n = 9) lessons over 12 weeks. Disease severity, spatial cognition, balance, and fall incidence were evaluated pre-, post-, and 10-12 weeks postintervention. The authors evaluated differences using t tests and analyses of variance. Twenty-three tango and 8 education participants finished. Tango participants improved on disease severity (p = .008), and spatial cognition (p = .021) compared with education participants. Tango participants also improved in balance (p = .038), and executive function (p = .012). Gains were maintained 10-12 weeks postintervention. Multimodal exercise with structured syllabi may improve disease severity and spatial cognition in PD.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Neurology , Massachusetts General Hospital , Cambridge.
authors.forename: Kathleen E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: McKee
authors.forename: Madeleine E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Hackney
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D003614:Dance Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome