Effects of daily walking exercise on constipation in patients with Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a complex, progressive neurological disorder with motor and non-motor symptoms. Among the non-motor symptoms, constipation severely affects the patients' quality of life. Thus, the effects of a daily walking exercise on constipation and other symptoms were evaluated in patients with PD.

16 patients carried a walking tracker for 1 week to individually measure their daily baseline steps. Subsequently, participants performed random walking exercises and maintained a dietary diary for 3 months, with the goal to increase their daily step count by 3000 from the baseline. Participants recorded their dietary intake for another 3 months after the walking intervention. Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) and Patient Assessment of Constipation Symptoms (PAC-SYM) evaluations were conducted thrice during the 6-month trial period.

Walking significantly improved constipation and PD severity. PAC-SYM scores decreased at time 2 (immediately after the 3-month walking intervention) (mean difference (MD)=4.38, p=0.001, d=1.23) and time 3 (3 months after the walking intervention) (MD=3.19, p=0.033, d=0.73) compared with time 1 (baseline). UPDRS scores also declined at Time 2 (MD=7.13, p=0.003) and time 3 (MD=6.88, p=0.008), indicating clinically meaningful benefits.

A 3-month walking intervention improved constipation and motor and non-motor symptoms in PD, supporting exercise to slow disease progression. Future randomised controlled trials with biomarker assessments are warranted to validate these findings and clarify the underlying mechanisms.