Author(s) :

Allyson Luo.

Volume/Issue :

Abstract :

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s in the United States. It is a progressive movement disorder that affects the substantia nigra, an area of the brain containing neurons that are responsible for producing dopamine. Symptoms of PD include tremors, rigidity, bradykinesia, cognitive impairments, and mental challenges. While there is currently no cure for PD, there are several pharmacological treatments that aim to alleviate the symptoms. These treatments, however, often cannot address the full breadth of the complex disease. As a result, increasing research has been conducted on several non-pharmacological interventions, including music therapy, community-based therapy, and exercise. These modalities have been shown to improve motor and non motor symptoms and slow disease progression. Dance has emerged as a promising non-pharmacological intervention for PD. Several studies suggest that dance may be more beneficial to people with PD than music therapy, community-based therapy, and exercise alone. Dance synergistically combines music, community, and exercise, which may explain why dance is such an effective treatment.