Bicycling & Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease progressively paralyzes its victims, yet many of these individuals can still ride a bicycle, an act requiring considerable balance and physical coordination, as easily as a perfectly healthy person. According to "The New York Times," the ability of Parkinson's patients to ride bicycles came to light in the Netherlands, at the Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center. Observations by Dr. Bastiann Bloem confirmed that even end-stage Parkinson's patients can cycle unfettered by any disease symptoms.

Significance

• People suffer the progressive loss of muscular control associated with Parkinson's as the basal ganglia of the brain mysteriously begin to die off, causing a loss of the neurotransmitter that regulates nerve signals to the muscles, according to the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. In some instances, however, patients may experience a phenomenon known as the kinesia paradox, in which they can perform brief actions smoothly and normally when given external emotional or visual cues.

Case Histories

• "The New York Times" reports that Dr. Bloem encountered a 58-year-old man who had suffered from Parkinson's for a decade and could barely walk without assistance. This patient astonished Dr. Bloem by demonstrating how he could ride a bicycle with no sign of any Parkinson's symptoms. The patient also said he could do so for miles at a time. Dr. Bloem subsequently asked 20 other Parkinson's patients to attempt the feat to find that they, too, could ride effortlessly despite their illness.

Reasons

• Medical science currently has no definitive understanding of how a person afflicted with severe Parkinson's disease can ride a bicycle smoothly with no sign of symptoms, as in the case of Dr. Bloem's patient. In an interview with Public Radio International's "The World," Dr. Bloem speculated that the regular pressure from the foot pedals provides external cues to help the brain better coordinate motor functions, especially because other types of rhythmic stimuli, such as repeated visual cues, seem to help Parkinson's patients. Dr. Bloem also suggests that the motor pattern for cycling may exist in a different part of the brain than the pattern for walking.

Benefits

• Parkinson's sufferers who take up cycling get to enjoy a respite from their tremors and other mobility problems while their physical functioning appears to return to normal. In addition to this psychological boost, the Cleveland Clinic states that exercise in general helps people with Parkinson's maintain their balance, improve their gait and strengthen muscles against the illness's inevitable progression. It also helps to ward off certain unpleasant complications, such as joint stiffness, while improving the patient's overall health.

Considerations

• Parkinson's patients who wish to start bicycling or engaging in any other exercise routine should first get their doctor's approval. Patients should immediately stop any exercise activity that causes them to feel sick or uncomfortable. Since Parkinson's sufferers might encounter dangerous situations at traffic lights or in mounting and dismounting the bicycle, Dr. Bloem recommends the use of a stationary cycle, training cycle or tricycle for maximum stability and safety.