Researchers at Cardiff University are hoping to launch a study to discover if there is clinical evidence that drumming classes are improving the lives of Parkinson’s disease patients.
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00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:15 I suddenly thought, samba, hmm.
00:20 Because I know when you hear a samba band in the street,
00:22 you can't help but go into it.
00:24 And that's a big issue for people with Parkinson's.
00:28 They sort of lose that sense of rhythm.
00:30 They lose the rhythm of walking.
00:32 Some people have this freezing of gait thing
00:34 where they just suddenly can't go anywhere,
00:37 especially if you're in a doorway or something.
00:38 And I just thought that the samba rhythms would help them.
00:41 And I put it out to my Twitter network, which isn't huge,
00:46 but it is international.
00:47 And they all said, yes, that sounds really good idea.
00:50 Give it a go.
00:50 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:55 Before samba, I was struggling to get out of the chair.
00:59 So at least I am a bit more mobile now, not quite so stiff,
01:05 which is part and parcel of Parkinson's,
01:07 the stiffness in the joints.
01:09 I tend to still be leaning over to one side,
01:12 so I've got to try and prop myself up.
01:16 But I think without samba, I think I would be struggling.
01:19 [MUSIC PLAYING]
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01:32 We do look at things called biomarkers,
01:35 which are biological changes that
01:38 occur as part of the disease.
01:39 And they're often a really good marker of how
01:41 the disease is progressing.
01:43 However, we don't have really good biomarkers
01:46 for Parkinson's yet.
01:47 And so all clinical trials are based
01:49 on a rating of clinical symptoms.
01:51 And that will include, as I said, quality of life, motor,
01:53 and cognitive symptoms.
01:55 If we can do that, and people with Parkinson's
01:58 know that this is actually better for them,
02:01 good for them in lots of different ways,
02:02 including actually addressing some of their symptoms,
02:06 then there's nothing to stop them getting out and doing it
02:09 themselves.
02:10 You wait ages for somebody to come along and wave a magic wand.
02:13 But if there's something you can do yourself,
02:14 then that's really--
02:16 to me, that's really important.
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02:27 (upbeat music)