Mount Sinai Rehabilitation Hospital has begun offering two treatment programs to alleviate the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease at its Hartford facility.
The Lee Silverman Voice Treatments (LSVT) Loud and Big programs are evidenced-based techniques to improve communication and movement in people with Parkinson’s disease. More than one million people in the United States are affected by Parkinson’s disease and 60,000 are newly diagnosed annually.
LSVT Loud focuses on improving voice disorders that affect at least 89 percent of people with Parkinson’s disease, which can include a decrease in facial expression, and low voice volume. LSVT-certified speech therapists record each patient’s voice at the beginning of the program and teach them exercises to increase the volume of their speech, making it easier for them to communicate.
The LSVT Big program focuses on improving motor problems including slowness of movement, rigidity, and tremor. Therapists work with patients on skills to make their movement bigger. Patients are videotaped at the beginning of the program so that they can see their movement progress.
The intense, four-week program requires patients to attend four days each week for a one-hour speech session and a one-hour movement session.
