MJoTA.org

Medical Writing Institute - Emerald Pademelon Press LLC - Peace Scientists

Welcome

Registration page

Medical Writing Institute

Medical affairs

Writing for MJoTA

Faculty

International training

Information podcasts

MWI Certificate

MWI links

Presenting yourself

MWI Health Communications

MWI Syllabus Part 1

MWI Introduction

MWI Document anatomy

MWI Grammar

MWI Data

MWI Audience

MWI Statistics

MWI Writing for humans

MWI CME and CE

MWI Ethical writing

MWI Medical journals

MWI Plagiarism

MWI Style guides

MWI Press releases

MWI Document design

MWI Conferences

MWI Quiz editing

MWI Quiz hypertension

MWI Health Quiz 2

MWI Regulatory Writing

MWI Syllabus Part 2

MWI Regulatory agencies

MWI Drug development

MWI Regulatory documents

MWI: Coding

MWI IND

MWI Protocols

MWI Clinical trials

MWI Clinical trial ethics

MWI: Generics

MWI Package inserts

MWI Informed consent

MWI Clinical study report

MWI Adverse events

MWI Devices

MWI Compliance

MWI Post marketing fails

MWI Food safety

MWI Dietary supplements

MWI CTD

MWI FDA quiz

MWI Business

MWI Syllabus Part 3

MWI Contracts

MWI Who you are

MWI Resume

MWI Cover letter

MWI Networking

MWI Advertising

MWI The phone interview

MWI Interviewing

MWI Formalizing business

MWI Business plan

MWI Grant proposals

MWI Ethics

MWI Patents

MWI Tests & Exams

Slide shows, posters

Manuscripts & abstracts

Grant proposals

Regulatory documents

MJoTA pages

Author guidelines

MJoTA publications

Front covers

Breaking a leg

GWRAZ

Cancer

Cancer Podcasts

what is breast cancer

CDC breast cancer by age

CDC breast cancer ethnici

Diabetes

Dr Sackey Diabetes Guide

Diabetes CME resources

Diabetes Podcasts

Oats

White rice, white bread

Diabetes cinnamon rats

Diabetes cinnamon

Diabetes cinnamon EJI

Diabetes cinnamon lipids

Diabetes nutmeg

20120517 Coffee NEJM

20120517coffee alzheimers

20120517 Coffee Japan

Amer J Diabetes

20120612antidiabeticPlant

20120619 oats UK

20120619 oats Ulster

20120618 oats sweden

20120618 oats brazil

20120618 oats canada

MJoTAtalks: Health

MSc Europe

Food and health

Drinking sugar

Contact us

 
Loading

Parkinson's Disease


Exercise as state-of-the-art therapy for Parkinson's Disease click here


Gamma knife therapy for Parkinson's Disease tremors click here


Effective therapies for Parkinson's Disease click here


What Is Parkinson's Disease?

edited from http://nihseniorhealth.gov

A Brain Disorder

Parkinson's disease results in shaking, stiffness, and difficulty with walking, balance, and coordination. It affects about half a million people in the United States although the numbers may be much higher. The average age of onset is 60 years, and the risk of developing Parkinson's goes up with age.

Parkinson's disease was first described in 1817 by James Parkinson, a British doctor who published a paper on what he called "the shaking palsy."

Four Main Symptoms

Parkinson's disease is a movement disorder. The four main symptoms are:

  • tremor, or trembling in hands, arms, legs, jaw, or head

  • rigidity, or stiffness of the limbs and trunk

  • bradykinesia, or slowness of movement

  • postural instability, or impaired balance.

Parkinson's symptoms usually begin gradually and get worse over time. As the symptoms become more severe, it results in difficulty walking, talking, or completing other simple tasks as well as non-motor, or movement, symptoms including mental and behavioral changes, sleep problems, depression, memory difficulties, and fatigue.

Parkinson's disease affects the entire body. While the brain involvement is responsible for the core features, other affected locations contribute to the complicated picture of Parkinson's.

Parkinson's disease is both chronic, meaning it lasts for a long time, and progressive, meaning its symptoms grow worse over time. It is not contagious.

Diagnosis Can Be Difficult

About 60,000 Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson's disease each year. However, it's difficult to know exactly how many have it because many people in the early stages of the disease think their symptoms are due to normal aging and do not seek help from a doctor. Also, diagnosis is sometimes difficult because there are no medical tests that can diagnose the disease with certainty and because other conditions may produce symptoms of Parkinson's.

For example, people with Parkinson's may sometimes be told by their doctors that they have other disorders, and people with diseases similar to Parkinson's may be incorrectly diagnosed as having Parkinson's. A person’s good response to the drug levodopa may support the diagnosis. Levodopa is the main therapy for Parkinson’s disease.

Who Is at Risk?

Both men and women can have Parkinson’s disease. However, the disease affects about 50 percent more men than women.

While the disease is more common in developed countries, studies also have found an increased risk of Parkinson's disease in people who live in rural areas and in those who work in certain professions, suggesting that environmental factors may play a role in the disorder.

Researchers are focusing on additional risk factors for Parkinson’s disease. One clear risk factor for Parkinson's is age. The average age of onset is 60 years and the risk rises significantly with advancing age. However, about 5 to 10 percent of people with Parkinson's have "early-onset" disease which begins before the age of 50. Early-onset forms of Parkinson's are often inherited, though not always, and some have been linked to specific gene mutations.

Juvenile Parkinsonism

In very rare cases, parkinsonian symptoms may appear in people before the age of 20. This condition is called juvenile parkinsonism. It is most commonly seen in Japan but has been found in other countries as well. It usually begins with dystonia (sustained muscle contractions causing twisting movements) and bradykinesia (slowness of movement), and the symptoms often improve with levodopa medication. Juvenile parkinsonism often runs in families and is sometimes linked to a mutated gene.

Some Cases Are Inherited

Evidence suggests that, in some cases, Parkinson’s disease may be inherited. An estimated 15 to 25 percent of people with Parkinson's have a known relative with the disease. People with one or more close relatives who have Parkinson's have an increased risk of developing the disease themselves, but the total risk is still just 2 to 5 percent unless the family has a known gene mutation for the disease. A gene mutation is a change or alteration in the DNA or genetic material that makes up a gene.

Researchers have discovered several genes that are linked to Parkinson's disease. The first to be identified was alpha-synuclein or SNCA. Inherited cases of Parkinson’s disease are caused by mutations in the LRRK2, PARK2 or parkin, PARK7 or DJ-1, PINK1, or SNCA genes, or by mutations in genes that have not yet been identified.


MJoTA has been published since 2006 by Emerald Pademelon Press LLC. PO Box 381 Haddonfield, NJ 08033, USA. MJoTA.org, MedicalWritingInstitute.org and drsusanna.org host MJoTA, and the Medical Writing Institute, which is a New Jersey nonprofit corporation. Inquiries for the Medical Writing Institute or Emerald Pademelon Press LLC: publisher@mjota.org. Contact the publisher directly through email, Twitter, Linkedin