LSVT BIG
LSVT BIG is a an intensive, amplitude focused physical and occupational therapy approach
developed from principles of the effective Parkinson’s specific speech treatment LSVT LOUD® .
• The LSVT Programs have been developed and scientifically researched over the past 25 years
with funding from the National Institutes of Health.
• Research on LSVT BIG has documented improved ratings on tests of motor functioning in people
with Parkinson disease following treatment including:
– Faster walking with bigger steps
– Improved balance
– Increased trunk rotation
– Improvements in activities of daily living such as bed mobility
– Improved UPDRS Motor Score
LSVT BIG is a standardized treatment protocol, which is customized to the unique goals of each
patient including both gross and fine motor skills. LSVT BIG can be adapted or progressed in order
to meet each patient’s needs across a range of disease severity and presenting impairments.
• LSVT BIG treatment consists of:
1) 16 sessions: 4 consecutive days a week for 4weeks
2) Individual 1 hour sessions
3) Daily homework practice
4) Daily carryover exercises
• It is essential that LSVT BIG treatment is only delivered by physical or occupationaltherapists
who are certified in this method.
• Over 29,000 therapists from 55 countries have been certified in LSVT BIG.
Select References:
1. Ebersbach, G., Ebersbach, A., Edler, D., Kaufhold, O., Kusch, M., Kupsch, A., & Wissel, J. (2010). Comparing
exercise in Parkinson’s disease–the Berlin LSVT®BIG study. Movement Disorders, 25, 2478.
2. Fox, C., Ebersbach, G., Ramig, L., & Sapir, S. (2012). LSVT LOUD and LSVT BIG: Behavioral treatment programs for
speech and body movement in Parkinson disease. Parkinson’s Disease, 2012, Article ID 391946, 12pgs.
3. Isaacson, S., O’Brien, A., Lazaro, J.D., Ray, A., Fluet, F. (2018). The JFK BIG study: the impact of
LSVT BIG® on dual task walking and mobility in persons with Parkinson’s disease. The Journal of
Physical Therapy Science, 30: 636–641.
Research has been funded, in part, by the: National Institutes of Health-National Institutes on-Deafness and Other
Communication Disorders (NID-NIDCD) R01 DC001150 and National Institute of
Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) R21 NS043711.
