Background and purpose: In the outpatient setting, it can be difficult to effectively manage the complex medical and rehabilitation needs of people with Parkinson disease (PD). A multidisciplinary approach in the inpatient rehabilitation environment may be a viable alternative. The purposes of this study were: (1) to investigate the effectiveness of an inpatient rehabilitation program for people with a primary diagnosis of PD, (2) to determine whether gains made were clinically meaningful, and (3) to identify predictors of rehabilitation outcome.
Subjects: Sixty-eight subjects with a diagnosis of PD were admitted to an inpatient rehabilitation hospital with a multidisciplinary movement disorders program.
Methods: Subjects participated in a rehabilitation program consisting of a combination of physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy for a total of 3 hours per day, 5 to 7 days per week, in addition to pharmacological adjustments based on data collected daily. A pretest-posttest design was implemented. The differences between admission and discharge scores on the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) (total, motor, and cognitive scores), Timed "Up & Go" Test, 2-Minute Walk Test, and Finger Tapping Test were analyzed.
Results: An analysis of data obtained for the 68 subjects admitted with a diagnosis of PD revealed significant improvements across all outcome measures from admission to discharge. Subjects with PD whose medications were not adjusted during their admission (rehabilitation only) (n=10) showed significant improvements in FIM total, motor, and cognitive scores. Improvements exceeded the minimal clinically important difference in 71% of the subjects. Prior level of function at admission accounted for 20% of the variance in the FIM total change score.
Discussion and conclusion: The results suggest that subjects with a diagnosis of PD as a primary condition benefited from an inpatient rehabilitation program designed to improve functional status.