Session Information
Date: Monday, June 20, 2016
Session Title: Quality of life/caregiver burden in movement disorders
Session Time: 12:30pm-2:00pm
Location: Exhibit Hall located in Hall B, Level 2
Objective: To narratively review the effectiveness of non-contact boxing and explore its feasibility in individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Background: Complementary therapies have shown outcomes similar to conventional physiotherapy. Non-contact boxing gains popularity among individuals with PD since 2011. It offers an alternative to promote active empowerment in the progressive neurological disease. Although non-contact boxing has been analysed in a recent systematic review, its effectiveness and feasibility have not been explored outside the gym.
Methods: An electronic search is conducted via PubMed, ScienceDirect, and CINAHL using the keywords; ‘Boxing’, ‘Parkinson’s disease’, ‘Physical Therapy’ and ‘Quality of Life’. Articles are selected based on the following inclusion criteria: 1) Studies in English 2) Non-contact boxing as an intervention for patients with PD 3) Studies published within last 10 years. Conference proceedings are excluded. Critical Appraisal Skill Programme (CASP) was used to appraise both articles.
Results: Out of the 944 articles found, a case control and a randomised controlled trial (RCT) were further analysed. Both studies demonstrated moderate level of methodological quality. 6 participants in the case control (Hoehn & Yahr stages 1-3) and 11 participants in the RCT (Hoehn & Yahr stages 2-3) completed 24 to 36 sessions of 90 minutes of non-contact boxing across 12 weeks safely. They had improvements in gait, balance, exercise endurance and quality of life. However, studies reported high dropout rates. Physiotherapists and caregivers were not involved in these sessions. Moreover, information from the service providers was inadequate to explore the therapy in other clinics.
Conclusions: Non-contact boxing could be an adjunct to conventional physiotherapy. It also demonstrates similar benefits. Future studies should be more robust and explore feasibility issues in clinical context.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
Z.R. Yee, S.H.X. Liew. Non-contact boxing in Parkinson’s disease [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2016; 31 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/non-contact-boxing-in-parkinsons-disease/. Accessed May 9, 2025.« Back to 2016 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/non-contact-boxing-in-parkinsons-disease/