Technology

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a relevant pathology in the clinical world due to its current high degree of prevalence and its negative functional prognosis. It is important to design rehabilitation programs for patients with Parkinson's, aimed at raising awareness among people, family members, and health professionals about the management of the pathology, its characteristics and care alternatives, with special emphasis on the importance of creating new rehabilitation strategies such as virtual reality to provide better conditions and quality of life.

The effectiveness of interventions with virtual reality for the rehabilitation of patients with PD compared to a conventional intervention, presents a main focus generated with images and virtual objects that are caused by multiple sensory stimulation that in turn lead to motor stimulation, which must be substantiated with therapeutic fines and parameters focused on: 1) a computer user interface, 2) immersion in the virtual environment and 3) focus on motor rehabilitation.

On the one hand, it is evident that virtual reality therapy through the different methods used in physiotherapy for the short-term treatment of patients were effective in improving gait, functional mobility and balance, reducing falls, qualified clinical deterioration and disability measures; also the positive impact of therapeutic methods on the quality of life, the number of adverse events and the economic aspect of the patients.

On the other hand, people with Parkinson's exposed to a conventional short-term rehabilitation program do not have the same positive effects in improving gait and balance, being a slow rehabilitation process. It is important to highlight that the lack of rehabilitation can seriously affect people's quality of life, in their physical, emotional, and social aspects, among others.

In conclusion, rehabilitation with virtual reality is more efficient and has better results improving gait, functional mobility and balance, reducing falls, and others compared to conventional rehabilitation for people with Parkinson's at any stage of the disease.

Bibliography: - Serra, J., Sánchez, A. & Alonso, J. (2010). Motor Assessment of Parkinson's Patients: Review Study, Rev Fisioter Guadalupe, 9(2): 7-13. - Dockx K, Van den Bergh V, Bekkers EMJ, Ginis P, Rochester L, Hausdorff JM, Mirelman A, Nieuwboer A. Virtual reality for rehabilitation in Parkinson's disease. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2013, number 10. Art. No.: CD010760. - Ellis, T., Goede, C., Feldman, R., Wolters, E., Kwakkel, G. and Wagenaar, R. (2005). Efficacy of a physiotherapy program in patients with Parkinson's disease: a randomized controlled trial, Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 86: 626-632.