Parkinson’s disease is a disorder caused by the gradual reduction of a chemical in the brain called dopamine. The process results in symptoms – such as stiff limbs, tremors, impaired posture, slowed movements, poor balance, walking problems, and speech changes – that worsen over time.
Since there is no cure, scientists at Japan’s Fukuoka University decided to test out the therapeutic potential of ping pong (table tennis) in treating symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, or other ailments associated with the brain. The sport calls for sharp hand-eye coordination, quick reflexes, and alertness, therefore, by playing the game all those skills are exercised. It could be an excellent form of physical therapy for Parkinson’s disease, the researchers thought.
Lo and behold, the participants of the study who engaged in a ping pong exercise program once a week for six months showed improvement in their Parkinson’s symptoms. Nearly all of them were able to carry out a variety of everyday tasks better at the end of the six-month preliminary study than before it started. The findings will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 72nd Annual Meeting in Canada in May 2020, and a preliminary study (an abstract of the paper) has been released online here.
Study author Ken-ichi Inoue, M.D., of Fukuoka University in Fukuoka, Japan, said:
Ping pong, which is also called table tennis, is a form of aerobic exercise that has been shown in the general population to improve hand-eye coordination, sharpen reflexes, and stimulate the brain. We wanted to examine if people with Parkinson’s disease would see similar benefits that may, in turn, reduce some of their symptoms.
The Study
- Twelve 73-year-old (on average) people enrolled who had mild to moderate Parkinson’s disease – diagnosed about seven years prior.
- The participants were tested at the onset of the study to log which symptoms were present and how severe each one was. They were also tested mid-way and at the end of the study.
- The ping pong program consisted of five-hour sessions once a week for six months straight. During a session, they were guided through stretching exercises followed by table tennis training with instruction from a professional ping-pong player.
The Results
- The participants showed “significant improvements” after three months and six. Their ability to speak, dress, walk, get out of bed, and their handwriting had improved.
- Before the table tennis training, it took two or more attempts for the participants to get themselves out of bed. By the end of the six months, that number dropped to an average of one attempt.
- There were also significant improvements in posture, facial expression, neck stiffness, and hand tremors. For instance, for neck muscle rigidity, the score improved from an average of three to two (four being severe rigidity, one being mild).
Inoue said:
While this study is small, the results are encouraging because they show ping pong, a relatively inexpensive form of therapy, may improve some symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. A much larger study is now being planned to confirm these findings.
The team plans to address the points lacking in this study in further research by conducting another more prominent national multi-center study.
