Objective: Many uncertainties remain regarding the motor learning challenges faced by individuals with PD, specifically in retaining and recalling acquired motor skills over time without additional practice (motor retention).

Background: Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative movement disorder that primarily affects the basal ganglia, a group of brain nuclei essential for the initiation and regulation of movement, procedural learning, and the automation of acquired motor skills.

Method: In this 2-year longitudinal study, we utilized an established open-loop goal-directed force task involving the index finger and ankle to investigate whether motor retention is impaired in individuals with PD. Our aim was to determine whether endpoint accuracy—quantified by force and temporal errors—deteriorates across two years in the PD group compared with healthy controls (HC). Thirty-three individuals with PD and 28 HC completed two visits over two years, performing an index finger abduction task and an ankle dorsiflexion task. The goal-directed force task required participants to match their peak force to a target at 15% of maximum force within 160 milliseconds. Disease progression was quantified using the Movement Disorder Society-sponsored revision of the Unified PD Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS), and cognition level was assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA).

Results: Relative to the HC group, the PD group exhibited significant disease progression (p<0.001). Motor retention in the finger force task was significantly different between the two groups (p<0.001). Specifically, the PD group exhibited an increase in force error (7.4 ± 16.4%), whereas the HC group exhibited a decrease in force error (-7.6 ± 9.6%). Temporal error did not change significantly (p>0.9) for either group. The increased finger force error in the PD group was not associated with changes in disease progression (R²=0.03). In the ankle force task, motor retention was not significantly different between the two groups in terms of force error (p>0.8) and temporal error (p=0.065).

Conclusion: This study provides novel evidence that long-term motor retention is impaired in individuals with Parkinson’s disease, and this deficit is not driven by the overall progression of the disease itself. These impairments appear to be more robust for upper-limb force control.

« Back to 2026 International Congress

MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/impaired-retention-of-goal-directed-movements-in-parkinsons-disease-a-2-year-longitudinal-analysis/