BACKGROUND: In the United States, about 60,000 new cases of Parkinson's disease are diagnosed each year, adding to the 1.5 million Americans currently living with the disease. Parkinson's disease is a brain disorder that occurs when nerve cells in a certain part of the brain die or become impaired. Normally, these cells produce a chemical called dopamine, which allows smooth, coordinated function of the body's muscles and movement. When about 80 percent of the dopamine-producing cells are damaged, symptoms of Parkinson's disease appear. The loss of dopamine production in the brain causes symptoms such as tremors, slowness of movement, stiffness and difficulty with balance.

DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT: Diagnosing Parkinson's disease can be difficult. There is no X-ray or simple blood test to detect it. A doctor typically arrives at the diagnosis after a thorough exam. There are several medications that help ease the symptoms of Parkinson's. The medicines most commonly used attempt to either replace or mimic dopamine, which helps improve tremor, rigidity and slowness. Several new medications are currently being studied that may slow down the progression. Surgery can also ease the symptoms, but it is not a cure. (Source: National Parkinson Foundation)

DANCING FOR PARKINSON'S: Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis recently conducted a study to determine if dancing could help patients with Parkinson's disease. They studied patients who took part in 20 sessions of regular tango dance classes. The researchers compared the effects of the dance classes to those of traditional exercise classes. The tango classes included stretching, balance exercises, tango-style walking, footwork patterns, experimenting with timing of steps to music and dancing with and without a partner. The exercise classes included 40 minutes of seated exercise followed by standing moves supported by a chair and core strengthening and stretching. The researchers found the participants in both groups showed significant improvement in the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Motor Subscale 3, which measures overall disease severity with respect to movement; however, the tango participants showed much greater improvement on the Berg Balance Scale, which measures balance in a variety of positions. In addition, the participants in the tango group showed a trend toward improvement in the Timed Up and Go test, which measures functional mobility rising from a chair, walking a short distance, turning and returning to the chair. Researchers say while dance, in general, may be beneficial for patients with Parkinson's, the tango uses several aspects of movement that may be especially relevant, including dynamic balance, turning, initiation of movement, moving at a variety of speeds and walking backward. This is the first study of its kind and researchers say more studies with larger groups are needed to confirm their findings.