title: Effectiveness of autogenic training in improving motor performances in Parkinson's disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Relaxation training can be an important adjunct in reducing symptoms associated with Parkinson's disease (PD). Autogenic Training (AT) is a simple, easily administered and inexpensive technique for retraining the mind and the body to be able to relax. AT uses visual imagery and body awareness to promote a state of deep relaxation.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether AT when used as an adjunct to Physiotherapy (PT) improves motor performances in PD in comparison with a control group receiving PT alone.
  
  
  METHODS
  Randomized, controlled, single blinded trial.
  
  
  METHODS
  Movement Disorder Clinic and Department of Physiotherapy, Sree Chithira Thirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology in Trivandrum, Kerala, India.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with PD of grade 2 or 3 of Hoehn & Yahr (H&Y) scale (N = 66).
  
  
  METHODS
  AT group or control group. The techniques were administered by Physiotherapists trained in AT and consisted of 40 sessions per patient over 8 weeks.
  
  
  METHODS
  Motor score subscale of Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) was used to measure the motor performances. The primary outcome measure was the difference in Motor score subscale of UPDRS scores between Week 1 (pretest score), Week 8 (posttest score), and follow-up at Week 12 after randomization.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The simple main effects analysis showed that the AT group performed better than the control group in weeks 8 and 12 (P < .005). Patients in the AT and control groups reported a 51.78% and 35.24% improvement, respectively, in their motor performances in Week 8 compared with that in Week 1, which persisted, in the follow-up (Week 12) as 30.82% in the AT group and 21.42% in the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study provides evidence that AT when used as an adjunct to PT is more effective than PT alone in improving motor performances in PD patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiotherapy, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar. Electronic address: ajimshaw.ms@gmail.com.
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Ajimsha
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Physiotherapy, School of Medical Education, India.
authors.forename: Nisar A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Majeed
authors.affiliation: School of Physiotherapy, AIMST University, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Elanchezhian
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Chinnavan
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Engineering and Computer Technology, AIMST University, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Ramiah Pillai
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Thulasyammal
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001326:Autogenic Training; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*
keywords: Autogenic Training; Parkinson's disease; Physiotherapy