Parkinson’s Disease – Advice On Mobility Products For Parkinson’s Disease Patients

PRLog (Press Release) - Oct 15, 2009 -
Parkinson’s disease is a difficult and frustrating illness affecting one in 500 people in the UK. There are a wealth of services, advice and products on hand that can help with symptoms and side effects associated with Parkinson’s disease, making life easier for both careers and patients.

Parkinson’s disease or PD as it can often be called is a movement disorder that persists over a long period of time and progressively gets worse.  This degenerative disorder attacks the central nervous system resulting in impaired motor skills that cause tremors, muscle rigidity, and slowing or loss of physical movement.

Exercise and mobility are the best things you can do/ or encourage to restore some independence against Parkinson’s negative effects. Medical experts view exercise with the same level of importance as medication when it comes to the management of Parkinson’s disease. Exercise helps by keeping muscles strong and improving flexibility and mobility, as well as recovering balance and preventing joint stiffening. For example investing in a Pedal Exerciser can help re-establish muscle strength in the lower body and is easy to use in the home.

Getting out and about is important, as it a great source of both physical and mental activity improving the quality of life for the Parkinson’s patient. Mobility Aids such as walking sticks http://www.collinscare.co.uk/viewcategory.php?categoryid=21 are designed to provide support for those who have difficulty keeping their balance. A Parkinson's patient tends to stoop forward and shuffle, so the Quad Cane would be a recommended strong support for the patient. However there is the Walking Stick Seat that as implied in its name, has a seat for when the user feels fatigued and can be easily  folded for storage or travel.

Freezing, getting locked in one position is an immobilizing symptom of Parkinson’s that prevents the patient from walking. The Parkinson’s sufferer cannot seem to focus on taking another step however there is a mobility aid on the market that combats this problem. This mobility product is a laser that come attached to walking stick, beaming a line onto the ground encouraging the user to step over it.
   
Hand tremors can be an embarrassing symptom of Parkinson’s, but one that can often be compensated for by using mobility utensils. For example the Sure Grip Cup has deep groves to resist slippage and the Good Grips Weighted Cutlery http://www.collinscare.co.uk/products/Good_Grips_Weighte ... has added weight to engage more muscle control. These products and many more allow the Parkinson's patient to remain more independent, which can help with the side effect of depression that can be related to this disease.

To find out more information about caring for someone with Parkinson visit www.parkinsons.org.uk or alternatively to enquire about suitable mobility products contact www.collinscare.co.uk.