Aarhus University Seal

Parkinson’s disease patients benefit from bicycling - a systematic review and meta-analysis

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaperReviewResearchpeer-review

  • Marianne Tiihonen, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
  • ,
  • Britta U. Westner, Radboud University Nijmegen
  • ,
  • Markus Butz, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
  • ,
  • Sarang S. Dalal

Many Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients are able to ride a bicycle despite being severely compromised by gait disturbances up to freezing of gait. This review [PROSPERO CRD 42019137386] aimed to find out, which PD-related symptoms improve from bicycling, and which type of bicycling exercise would be most beneficial. Following a systematic database literature search, peer-reviewed studies with randomized control trials (RCT) and with non-randomized trials (NRCT) investigating the interventional effects of bicycling on PD patients were included. A quality analysis addressing reporting, design and possible bias of the studies, as well as a publication bias test was done. Out of 202 references, 22 eligible studies with 505 patients were analysed. An inverse variance-based analysis revealed that primary measures, defined as motor outcomes, benefitted from bicycling significantly more than cognitive measures. Additionally, secondary measures of balance, walking speed and capacity, and the PDQ-39 ratings improved with bicycling. The interventions varied in durations, intensities and target cadences. Conclusively, bicycling is particularly beneficial for the motor performance of PD patients, improving crucial features of gait. Furthermore, our findings suggest that bicycling improves the overall quality-of-life of PD patients.

Original languageEnglish
Article number86
Journalnpj Parkinson's Disease
Volume7
Issue1
Number of pages10
ISSN2042-0080
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 24 Sep 2021

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s).

    Research areas

  • AEROBIC EXERCISE, BRADYKINESIA, EXECUTIVE FUNCTION, FALL RISK, GAIT, HETEROGENEITY, INTERVENTION, ISSUES, MOTOR, STANDARD

See relations at Aarhus University Citationformats

ID: 223916076