After 3 weeks of continuing their Rock Steady Boxing classes study participants met this week for their final assessment. Now that the data collection period is over, the results can be analyzed. Overall the study went well, although there are some limitations. As we were limited in the number of participants, the number of study participants may not be large enough to be statistically significant. Additionally, there was only a three week separation between the baseline assessment and the final assessment, which may not be a long enough period to determine that Rock Steady Boxing has a significant impact. However, there was a difference in the results of the participants from the baseline session and the final session.
Average baseline and final session results for each assessment.
The Results of the Study
On average study participants were faster in the TUG test in their final session than the baseline session. This implies that Rock Steady has a positive impact on Parkinson's patients' mobility, strength, and intentional movement. The TUG test is often practiced in Rock Steady Boxing classes, and participants are familiar with the exercise. This may be why the TUG test showed the greatest difference between the baseline session and the final session. On average study participants scored higher on the BEST test in their final session than the baseline session. This implies that Rock Steady has a positive impact on Parkinson's patients' balance and multitasking. Although there was not a large difference in the results between the baseline and the final session, this may be because this test is scored based on the proctor's observation, which may not capture subtler improvements. Finally, on average study participants scored less on the PDQOL in their final session than the baseline session. This implies that Rock Steady has a positive impact on Parkinson's patients' quality of life. However, as participants were aware of the study they may have convinced themselves that they were doing better than what was objectively occurring, and unconsciously skewed the results.
What happens next?
Overall, this study showed that Rock Steady Boxing has a positive impact on Parkinson's patients' symptoms and quality of life. Although these results may not be statistically significant due to the limitations of this study, it cannot be denied that Rock Steady Boxing is great for Parkinson's patients. When asked if attending Rock Steady Boxing had helped their symptoms, every study participant replied that it had. In the future a study with similar methods but with a greater number of participants and over a longer time period should be done to confirm the significance of these results. More information on Rock Steady Boxing can be found here: https://rebelfitclub.com/
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