Gait disorders, especially freezing of gait (FoG), are among the most disturbing problems in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. FoG is a brief, episodic absence or notable reduction of forward progression of the feet, despite the intention to walk.Patients with gait disability have great difficulty initiating or maintaining locomotion, and are at increased risk of falls. By contrast with hypokinetic gait (short-stepped, shuffling with slow velocity), improvement of FoG in response to dopaminergic treatments or subthalamic stimulation is lost over time. Therefore, FoG is considered to be due not only to dopaminergic deficit, but also to other abnormalities that occur as the disease progresses.
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