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Lower Limb Rigidity Is Associated with Frequent Falls in Parkinson's Disease
Author(s) -
McKay J. Lucas,
Hackney Madeleine E.,
Factor Stewart A.,
Ting Lena H.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
movement disorders clinical practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.754
H-Index - 18
ISSN - 2330-1619
DOI - 10.1002/mdc3.12784
Subject(s) - parkinson's disease , muscle rigidity , etiology , medicine , rigidity (electromagnetism) , physical medicine and rehabilitation , rating scale , physical therapy , logistic regression , disease , lower limb , psychology , surgery , developmental psychology , anesthesia , structural engineering , engineering
Background and Objective The role of muscle rigidity as an etiological factor of falls in Parkinson's disease (PD) is poorly understood. Our objective was to determine whether lower leg rigidity was differentially associated with frequent falls in PD compared to upper limb, neck, and total rigidity measures. Methods We examined the associations between Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale–Part III (motor) rigidity subscores and the history of monthly or more frequent falls in 216 individuals with PD (age, 66 ± 10 years; 36% female; disease duration, 7 ± 5 years) with logistic regression. Results A total of 35 individuals were frequent fallers. Significant associations were identified between lower limb rigidity and frequent falls ( P = 0.01) after controlling for age, sex, PD duration, total Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale– Part III score, and presence of freezing of gait. No significant associations ( P ≥ 0.14) were identified for total, arm, or neck rigidity. Conclusion Lower limb rigidity is related to frequent falls in people with PD. Further investigation may be warranted into how parkinsonian rigidity could cause falls.