Extract from Spring Times No 57 October 2010.

This refers to the World Parkinson Congress held in Glasgow in July 2010.

 

Following the morning Plenary Session on Day 2 we attended a workshop on Dance and Parkinson's Disease because it has long been of personal interest that my husband’s movement disorders disappear completely on the dance floor or when he listens to marching music. We are currently conducting our own little research trial with an iPod and the golf course! I was particularly interested to understand how music fits into the movement centre of the brain and why it is such a powerful cueing technique. We were actually very privileged at the end of the session to have an informal chat with a young Italian neurologist who ‘popped in’ and patiently explained the various auditory, memory and other pathways that enable you to create a different route for movement. Interestingly, he also told us that we all possess a body rhythm that is individual to each person so it’s all about finding your own natural rhythm and working to that pace if you are looking for a cueing mechanism. What a piece of luck that my rhythm matches that of my husband on the dance floor!