All,
There has been a recent buzz on how AlignMed is a great tool for PARKINSON'S patients. I have heard it a few times in the recent weeks and thought his white paper from our President, Bill Schultz, was worth sharing with everyone.
AlignMed™ Posture Maintenance and Motor Control in Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson's Disease (PD) is a degenerative neurologic disorder attributed to the death of dopamine-generating cells in a region of the midbrain. The most obvious symptoms are movement-related; these include shaking, slowness of movement, muscle rigidity and difficulty with walking. Poor posture is a hallmark feature of PD. As poor posture progresses muscle strength and flexibility decreases. The physical weakness in turn leads to increase in mental weakness including depression and dementia in advanced stages. PD is more common in older people with, with most cases occurring after the age of 50.
The Alignmed SpinalQ™ Vest, Posture Shirt™, and AlignMe™ Bra take an offensive position as a functional care therapy to slow the debilitating cascade of poor posture. The form-fitting garments incorporate variable elastic fabric panels, called NeuroBands™, to facilitate neuromechanical function, improve posture, strength, flexibility and slow the degenerative process of Parkinson's.
The Alignmed Experience and Expectation
THE PULL AND THE TOUCH – A gentle Pull of NeuroBands simultaneously stimulates muscles to contract and others to relax to achieve optimal posture. The consistent Touch of NeuroBands provides an unconscious biofeedback to induce awareness of your posture. The Pull and Touch working in tandem help fight vulnerable movement patterns that cause slouching, forward head, pelvic tipping and uneven spine loading without the user having to think about it.
THE HEAT - When muscles are activated, heat is a result. This is known as thermogenesis and lets you know the NeuroBands are working to reduce muscle and joint loads. A bonus side effect to thermogenesis is that it increases your calorie burn.
THE WORKOUT - Soreness is an indication that your muscles have had a workout without setting foot in the gym. The use of resistance bands as external therapy can be thought of as an extension of what physical therapists recommend to target muscle groups to help curtail the downward cascade of health in PD that poor posture encourages. You can wear your Alignmed garments every day, intermittently or even during sleep to retrain and balance a variety of muscle groups.
THE RESULT – An unconscious means to facilitate an improvement in the nervous system and to stave off the progression of poor posture and loss of motor control even when the user has involuntarily lost or is losing control of their motor function.
THE EFFECT - The desired effect is an improvement in posture, function, control of movement and a carry-over effect of muscle retraining when Alignmed is not being worn.
The unique construction of the SpinalQ, Posture Shirt and AlignMe Bra is comfortable and non-restrictive. The product chosen is based on the wearers' ability and the functional objectives assessed by the caregiver. The built in or adjustable NeuroBands, in some ways are comparable to the use of elastic skin taping techniques. The advantage of NeuroBands is they are easier to use, more comfortable and arguably, less expensive.
To date we have experience with over 100,000 users of Alignmed products whom suffer a variety of neuromuscular and pain disorders. The products are registered with the FDA; the SpinalQ has a Medicare reimbursement code; our return rate is only 6% and in 10 years we have not seen one legal action against the products. We have studied the effectiveness of the Posture Shirt and SpinalQ in stimulating muscle activity, improving posture, joint alignment, strength and vascularity. We have reviewed PD research showing that mobility, spasticity and quality of life can improve with rehabilitation and physical exercise when performed under the supervision of a physical therapist compared to a self-supervised exercise program at home. However, there are social and economic barriers that affect the amount and quality of care each PD patient receives. An outpatient study conducted at the University of Utah and Boston University found that the biggest barriers to exercise for people with PD include low expectations of the benefits, lack of time, and fear of falling. Thus, Alignmed products present great potential as a conservative, cost-effective, adjunctive treatment in a variety of PD care strategies. We cannot look past the need to find simple solutions to improve quality of life for those with PD.
We see no harm in trying Alignmed for Parkinson's disease; at minimum it represents a simple tool to help improve posture during any daily living activity.
Contributions:
Bill Schultz, President and Founder,
The Alignmed Medical Advisory Panel (AMAP)
