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Chapter 3 - Methods
Participants
Chapter 3 – Methods
Six participants (five female, one male, age: 74 � 7 years), were recruited
via the Auckland branch of the New Zealand Essential Tremor Support
Group. Each participant had been clinically diagnosed as having ET by a
neurologist (years diagnosed: 19 � 7 years, Table 2). To be eligible, no
participant could have had a recent history of strength training, and
mobility of the upper limb had to be normal. Participants continued with
their current drug therapies and were requested to maintain this
throughout the study. If medication change was directed by a
neurologist then they were to notify researchers. Prior to the
intervention each participant received an information sheet outlining
the study and their rights as participants. Following this, written
informed consent was given by participants. Participants were then
screened and assessed using the American College of Sports Medicine
risk stratification protocol for suitability to partake in an exercise
programme (Franklin, et al., 2000).
Experimental design
This pilot study sought to examine the effect of general, upper limb RT
on strength, hand and finger dexterity, and QoL in ET patients. To
investigate this, a single group, dual pre-post quasi-experimental study
design was used (as seen in Figure 2). This design was used due to the
novelty of this pilot study and the relative difficulty in recruiting
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