Parkinson's Disease
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Parkinson's Disease
NIH - Medical Encyclopedia Parkinson's disease
"Parkinson's disease is a disorder of the brain characterized by shaking (tremor) and difficulty with walking, movement, and coordination. The disease is associated with damage to a part of the brain that is involved with movement. Some people with Parkinson's disease become severely depressed. This may be due to loss of dopamine in certain brain areas involved with pleasure and mood. Lack of dopamine can also affect motivation and the ability to make voluntary movements. Early loss of mental capacities is uncommon. However, persons with severe Parkinson's may have overall mental deterioration (including dementia and hallucinations). Dementia can also be a side effect of some of the medications used to treat the disorder. ...
Symptoms:
Muscle rigidity Unstable, stooped, or slumped-over posture Loss of balance Gait (walking pattern) changes Shuffling walk Slow movements Difficulty initiating any voluntary movement Small steps followed by the need to run to maintain balance Freezing of movement when the movement is stopped, inability to resume movement Muscle aches and pains (myalgia) Shaking, tremors (varying degrees, may not be present) Changes in facial expression Reduced ability to show facial expressions Voice or speech changes Loss of fine motor skills Frequent falls Decline in intellectual function (may occur, can be severe) A variety of gastrointestinal symptoms, mainly constipation.symptoms may be difficult to assess, particularly in the elderly. For example, the tremor may not appear when the person is sitting quietly with arms in the lap. The posture changes may be similar to osteoporosis or other changes associated with aging. Lack of facial expression may be a sign of depression. An examination may show "cogwheel" rigidity (jerky, stiff movements), tremors of the Parkinson's type, and difficulty initiating or completing voluntary movements. Reflexes are essentially normal. Tests are not usually specific for Parkinson's, but they may be required to rule out other disorders that cause similar symptoms. See also essential tremor."
Highlighted Article
[Clinical criteria of Parkinson's disease.] (Ther Umsch. 2007)
"The clinical criteria of Parkinson's disease are akinesia in combination with at least one of the following three symptoms: tremor (asymmetrical resting tremor), rigidity, impairment of posture, gait and balance. Symptomatic and atypical parkinsonian syndromes are ruled out by history, clinical examination, cranial CT, MRI, SPECT or PET. Patients with Parkinson's disease respond to levodopa or dopaminagonists throughout the course of the disease."
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Parkinson's Disease
General Information
NEWS:
Fish Oil Protects Against Diseases Like Parkinson's findings showing that an omega three fatty acid in the diet protects brain cells by preventing the misfolding of a protein resulting from a gene mutation in neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's and Huntington's.
ARTICLES:
The Clinicians' and Nurses' Guide to Parkinson's Disease Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second-most common neurodegenerative disorder, after Alzheimer's disease. While classically considered a movement disorder, there is a growing recognition that PD produces a wide variety of nonmotor symptoms as well. Early diagnosis of PD is important for treatment planning and maintaining the highest quality of life for the longest period of time, yet at its earliest stages, PD may often be difficult to distinguish from other causes of parkinsonism. No definitive neuroprotective treatment is yet available, but symptomatic treatments may provide significant benefit for many years for the patient with PD. The wide range of treatment options and strategies, combined with the differing needs and comorbidities of different patients, means the physician must have detailed knowledge of multiple drugs from different classes, and how each is likely to impact the individual PD patient. In addition, nonpharmacologic treatments, from physical and recreational therapy to surgery to attention to the caregiver, are also central to the optimal management of PD.
JOURNAL ARTICLES:
Apathy may herald cognitive decline and dementia in Parkinson's disease. (Mov Disord. 2009)
Cognitive decline in early Parkinson's disease. (Mov Disord. 2009) We found that 31% of newly diagnosed idiopathic PD patients have measurable cognitive decline at an early stage of disease. Higher education is protective while depression may be predictive of cognitive decline.
Cognitive function in early Parkinson's disease: a population-based study. (Eur J Neurol. 2009)
Dopamine and impulse control disorders in Parkinson's disease. ( Ann Neurol. 2009)
Family history of melanoma and Parkinson disease risk. (Neurology. 2009)
Fatigue in Parkinson's disease patients. (Curr Treat Options Neurol. 2009)
Mortality in Parkinson's disease: A 20-year follow-up study. (Mov Disord. 2009)
Non-motor symptoms may herald Parkinson's disease. (Practitioner. 2009)
Parkinson disease with dementia: comparing patients with and without Alzheimer pathology.. (Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 2009)
Parkinson's disease and tea: a quantitative review. (J Am Coll Nutr. 2009) CONCLUSION: Tea consumption can protect against PD and this protective effect is clearer in Chinese populations. The low rate of tea consumption among persons with PD should provide us many valuable insights into the nature of the illness.
Parkinson's Disease with and without REM Sleep Behaviour Disorder: Are There Any Clinical Differences?Yoritaka A, Ohizumi H, Tanaka S, Hattori N. (Eur Neurol. 2009)
Pattern of depressive symptoms in Parkinson's disease. (Psychosomatics. 2009)
Positive family history of essential tremor influences the motor phenotype of Parkinson's disease (Movement Disorders 2009)
Prevalence and definition of drooling in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review. (J Neurol. 2009)
Prevalence of smell loss in Parkinson's disease - A multicenter study. (Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2009) Out of the total number of patients 45.0% presented as functionally anosmic, 51.7% were hyposmic, whereas only 3.3% were normosmic. This indicates that 96.7% of PD patients present with significant olfactory loss when compared to young normosmic subjects. This figure falls to 74.5%, however, when adjusted to age-related norms. Thus, olfactory dysfunction should be considered as a reliable marker of the disease.
The distinct cognitive syndromes of Parkinson's disease: 5 year follow-up of the CamPaIGN cohort (Brain 2009)
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