The assessment of the influence of physiotherapy and duration of the disease on the quality of life of patients with Parkinson's disease

Background. Parkinson's disease leads to the gradual loss of self-reliance and complete dependence on others in everyday life. It is important that the therapeutic process includes activities whose aim is to improve the functioning of the patient, which can be achieved through physiotherapy. Objectives. The objective of this study was to assess the quality of life of patients with Parkinson's disease with regard to variables concerning the duration of the disease and physiotherapy. Material and methods. The study involved 80 patients who were the members of the Szczecin Group Providing Help for People with Parkinson's Disease. In this survey-based study of authors' own design, the patients were described in terms of their sociodemographic and health characteristics. The quality of life (QoL) was measured using the SF-36 v.2 questionnaire. Results. The respondents had low QoL level (40.75 points). The lowest average QoL score was obtained for in the domain physical functioning. Most difficulties and limitations experienced by the patients (48.75% - 39 people) were associated with activities such as: running, heavy lifting, and sports requiring a lot of effort. Patients undergoing physiotherapy had only minor problems walking 500 meters. Those who were not subjected to physiotherapy (20% - 16 people) had the lowest QoL scores. Problems with activities of moderate difficulty were mostly observed among patients suffering from Parkinson's disease for 5-10 years. Conclusions. 1. Parkinson's disease negatively affects all QoL domains, especially physical functioning. 2. The duration of Parkinson's disease has influence on limitations in performing everyday activities of moderate difficulty. 3. Regular physiotherapy improve the quality of life of people with Parkinson's disease.