Characteristics Of Parkinson's Disease

What Are Atypical Parkinsonian Disorders

What is Parkinsons disease and are there different forms/types? (Karen Blindauer, MD)

Atypical Parkinsonian disorders are progressive diseases that present with some of the signs and symptoms of Parkinsons disease, but that generally do not respond well to drug treatment with levodopa. They are associated with abnormal protein buildup within brain cells.

The term refers to several conditions, each affecting particular parts of the brain and showing a characteristic course:

Dementia with Lewy bodies, characterized by an abnormal accumulation of alpha-synuclein protein in brain cells
Progressive supranuclear palsy, involving tau protein buildup affecting the frontal lobes, brainstem, cerebellum and substantia nigra
Multiple system atrophy, another synucleinopathy that affects the autonomic nervous system , substantia nigra and at times the cerebellum
Corticobasal syndrome, a rare tauopathy that typically affects one side of the body more than the other and makes it difficult for patients to see and navigate through space

What Are The Mortality Rates For Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s disease is not fatal, but it is often a handicap in advanced stages. Some people have a higher risk of death associated with Parkinson’s disease, but this is not the case for everyone. Many people who have the condition have a normal life expectancy.

People with advanced Parkinson’s disease may develop a type of cognitive impairment known as Parkinson’s dementia. Additionally, people who have Parkinson’s disease can develop other types of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. Cognitive impairment is a risk factor for death in Parkinson’s disease.

People who have an age of onset before age 40 have a more than fivefold higher risk of death compared to people of the same age in the general population.

What Causes Parkinson Disease

Parkinson disease arises from decreased dopamine production in the brain. The absence of dopamine makes it hard for the brain to coordinate muscle movements. Low dopamine also contributes to mood and cognitive problems later in the course of the disease. Experts don’t know what triggers the development of Parkinson disease most of the time. Early onset Parkinson disease is often inherited and is the result of certain gene defects.

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General Approach To Management

The primary goal in the management of PD is to treat the symptomatic motor and nonmotor features of the disorder, with the objective of improving the patients overall quality of life. Appropriate management requires an initial evaluation and diagnosis by a multidisciplinary team consisting of neurologists, primary care practitioners, nurses, physical therapists, social workers, and pharmacists., It is also important that the patient and his or her family have input into management decisions.

Effective management should include a combination of nonpharmacological and pharmacological strategies to maximize clinical outcomes. To date, therapies that slow the progression of PD or provide a neuroprotective effect have not been identified., Current research has focused on identifying biomarkers that may be useful in the diagnosis of early disease and on developing future disease-modifying interventions.,

What Causes Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinsons disease occurs when nerve cells in the basal ganglia, an area of the brain that controls movement, become impaired and/or die. Normally, these nerve cells, or neurons, produce an important brain chemical known as dopamine. When the neurons die or become impaired, they produce less dopamine, which causes the movement problems of Parkinson’s. Scientists still do not know what causes cells that produce dopamine to die.

People with Parkinson’s also lose the nerve endings that produce norepinephrine, the main chemical messenger of the sympathetic nervous system, which controls many functions of the body, such as heart rate and blood pressure. The loss of norepinephrine might help explain some of the non-movement features of Parkinson’s, such as fatigue, irregular blood pressure, decreased movement of food through the digestive tract, and sudden drop in blood pressure when a person stands up from a sitting or lying-down position.

Many brain cells of people with Parkinson’s contain Lewy bodies, unusual clumps of the protein alpha-synuclein. Scientists are trying to better understand the normal and abnormal functions of alpha-synuclein and its relationship to genetic mutations that impact Parkinsons disease and Lewy body dementia.

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What Are The Symptoms Of Atypical Parkinsonian Disorders

Like classic Parkinsons disease, atypical Parkinsonian disorders cause muscle stiffness, tremor, and problems with walking/balance and fine motor coordination.

Patients with atypical Parkinsonism often have some degree of difficulty speaking or swallowing, and drooling can be a problem. Psychiatric disturbances such as agitation, anxiety or depression may also be part of the clinical picture.

Dementia with Lewy bodies can cause changes in attention or alertness over hours or days, often with long periods of sleep during the day. Visual hallucinations typically of small animals or children, or moving shadows in the periphery of the visual field are common in DLB. DLB is second only to Alzheimers disease as a cause of dementia in the elderly, and it most commonly affects patients in their 60s.

Patients with progressive supranuclear palsy may have difficulties with eye movements, particularly when looking downward, and with balance when descending stairs, for instance. Backward falls are common and may occur during the early course of the disease. PSP is not usually associated with tremor, unlike Parkinsons disease.

Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center

Environmental Factors And Exposures

Exposure to pesticides and a history of head injury have each been linked with PD, but the risks are modest. Never drinking caffeinated beverages is also associated with small increases in risk of developing PD.

Low concentrations of urate in the blood is associated with an increased risk of PD.

Drug-induced parkinsonism

Different medical drugs have been implicated in cases of parkinsonism. Drug-induced parkinsonism is normally reversible by stopping the offending agent. Drugs include:

Phenothiazines

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How Are Parkinsons Tremors Treated

Tremor can be unpredictable. Some experts say itâs the toughest symptom to treat with medication. Your doctor may prescribe medication for your tremors:

Levodopa/carbidopa combination medicines . This treatment is a type of medication called a dopamine agonist. Itâs usually the first treatment for Parkinsonâs.

Fecal Incontinence In Advanced Parkinsons Disease

How to distinguish Parkinson’s disease from Essential Tremor – New Day Northwest

Fecal incontinence is a very debilitating symptom that can occur in advanced PD and refers to the involuntary release of fecal matter.

Once again, fecal incontinence, especially if it is a new symptom, should be fully evaluated to determine if there is a cause unrelated to PD. Diseases of the gut such as inflammatory bowel disease or compression of the lower spine cord can be the reason.

If related to PD, there are typically two situations to consider. One possibility is that severe constipation with impacted bowel movement allows loose stool from higher up in the gastrointestinal tract to escape around the edges of the obstruction. In this situation, fecal incontinence could be a harbinger of bowel obstruction. Aggressive and continuous treatment of constipation can help avoid this potential scenario.

Fecal incontinence can also be related to nerve dysfunction of the anal sphincter, or the ring of muscle that controls when feces is released. Cognitive dysfunction and mobility issues may further interfere with getting to the bathroom in time. Some treatment options are similar to urinary incontinence including the use of bedside equipment to minimize mobility issues and introduction of pelvic floor exercises to strengthen the musculature that keeps feces in place.

As with urinary incontinence, frequent and rapid exchange of dirtied incontinence products can keep skin intact and prevent infection.

Tips and Takeaways

Depression May Be An Early Symptom Of Parkinsons

Depression is one of the most common, and most disabling, non-motor symptoms of Parkinsons disease. As many as 50 per cent of people with Parkinsons experience the symptoms of clinical depression at some stage of the disease. Some people experience depression up to a decade or more before experiencing any motor symptoms of Parkinsons.

Clinical depression and anxiety are underdiagnosed symptoms of Parkinsons. Researchers believe that depression and anxiety in Parkinsons disease may be due to chemical and physical changes in the area of the brain that affect mood as well as movement. These changes are caused by the disease itself.

Here are some suggestions to help identify depression in Parkinsons:

Mention changes in mood to your physician if they do not ask you about these conditions.
Complete our Geriatric Depression Scale-15 to record your feelings so you can discuss symptoms with your doctor. Download the answer key and compare your responses.

delusions and impulse control disorders

Ordering Of Structural Alterations Across All Brain Regions

Following underlying assumptions of event-based disease progression modeling,,, we supposed that the ordering of structural alterations could represent a monotonic progression and, additionally, we regarded the progression as being stochastic. Thus, the ordering of structural alterations between 110 brain regions, including 62 cortical GM regions and 48 WM regions, was inferred by simulating the stochastic progression of structural alternation events across the brain regions by adopting a Markov chain Monte Carlo method. The probability of a structural alteration occurring at a specific step of a sequence was computed by P for a brain region, X, and other brain regions, , Y, , structural alterations of which not occurring yet at the step of the sequence. Considering variability in the spreading of structural alterations, which brain region would show a structural alteration at a specific step was determined via random sampling according to the individual brain regions probabilities of structural alterations at the step. From one million Markov chain Monte Carlo trajectories of structural alteration events, the ordering was finally determined from the sequence composed of a series of brain regions structural alterations of which occurred most frequently at respective steps of simulated sequences.

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Diagnosis Of Parkinsons Disease

A number of disorders can cause symptoms similar to those of Parkinson’s disease. People with Parkinson’s-like symptoms that result from other causes are sometimes said to have parkinsonism. While these disorders initially may be misdiagnosed as Parkinson’s, certain medical tests, as well as response to drug treatment, may help to distinguish them from Parkinson’s. Since many other diseases have similar features but require different treatments, it is important to make an exact diagnosis as soon as possible.

There are currently no blood or laboratory tests to diagnose nongenetic cases of Parkinson’s disease. Diagnosis is based on a person’s medical history and a neurological examination. Improvement after initiating medication is another important hallmark of Parkinson’s disease.

What You Can Do

As of 2021, there is no definite cure for Parkinsons disease. There is also no definite known cause. Its likely due to a combination of an individuals susceptibility and environmental factors. Most cases of Parkinsons disease happen without a genetic link.

According to research published in 2012, only report having a family member with the disease. Many toxins are suspected and have been studied, but no single substance can be reliably linked to Parkinsons.

However, research is ongoing. Its estimated that

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Motor Symptoms Of Parkinsons Disease

It is quite common for the beginning stages of Parkinsons Disease to affect an individuals motor skills. Keeping a sharp eye out for any of the below changes in your or your loved ones daily activity will be important should you be questioning the potential for Parkinsons.

Tremors or trembling of the hands, arms, legs, jaw and face
Stiffness in the arms or legs
Slowness of movement
Masked Face

Living With Parkinson Disease

These measures can help you live well with Parkinson disease:

An exercise routine can help keep muscles flexible and mobile. Exercise also releases natural brain chemicals that can improve emotional well-being.
High protein meals can benefit your brain chemistry
Physical, occupational, and speech therapy can help your ability to care for yourself and communicate with others
If you or your family has questions about Parkinson disease, want information about treatment, or need to find support, you can contact the American Parkinson Disease Association.

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Treating And Managing Bowel Problems

The first step in dealing with bowel disorders is to talk to your doctor. He or she will probably review your medication to see if this is a contributory factor. Whilst it is usually possible to control any difficulties with diet, fluid intake and exercise, your doctor, or Parkinsons nurse specialist if you have one, will be able to advise further, and may, for example, prescribe laxatives in severe cases of constipation. If you have any alarm features such as unintentional weight loss or rectal bleeding, then you may need to be referred for specialist assessment.

The following healthcare professionals can also advise on aspects of bowel care:

A dietician will be able to advise on diet and fluid.
A physiotherapist may be able to help with advice and abdominal exercises which will help in passing stools.
A speech and language therapist can help with swallowing problems. They may be able to advise on ways of relaxing your throat, and give guidance on posture and exercises to help overcome any difficulties you have.
An occupational therapist may also be able to suggest practical ways to overcome any difficulties you have with eating and drinking.

Characteristics Of Parkinsons Disease In Patients With And Without Cognitive Impairment

Analysis on different types of Parkinson’s Disease

Article type: Research Article

Affiliations: Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN, USA | Humana Healthcare Research, Inc., Louisville, KY, USA

Correspondence: Correspondence to: Julie Chandler, PhD, Eli Lilly and Company, Lilly Corporate Center, Indianapolis, IN 46285, USA. Tel.: +1 215 444 5740 Fax: +1 215 881 9511 E-mail: .

Keywords: Parkinsons disease, mild cognitive impairment, dementia, cost

DOI: 10.3233/JPD-202190

Journal: Journal of Parkinson’s Disease, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 1381-1392, 2021

Abstract

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The Swedish National Parkinson Register Parkreg

The Swedish National registry for Parkinsons Disease , which was established in 2011 with the aim to contribute to Swedish Parkinson care through continuous follow-up of clinical measures and HRQoL instruments in clinical practice and through research. The register includes demographic variables, diagnosis, treatments, and physician reported clinical measures of disease severity, and patient reported outcomes. Information is included per clinical practice when the patients visit the doctor/nurse at the neurologists office, which is at least once a year. Due to the longitudinal nature of the study, patients were not necessarily assessed by the same neurologist at all visits. The registry currently covers at least one registration in approximately 6800 patients out of approximately 22 000 patients with Parkinson´s disease in Sweden. This study is based on data on patients from the southernmost region of Sweden, Scania, with idiopathic Parkinsons disease in PARKreg that was retrieved in April 2020.

The Scania Cohort of PARKreg has an estimated coverage of approximately 50% of patients diagnosed with PD in the region. Included patients were required to have at least one valid assessment of one of the study outcomes apart from treatment variables.

What Is Parkinson Disease

Parkinson disease is a movement disorder. It can cause the muscles to tighten and become rigid This makes it hard to walk and do other daily activities. People with Parkinsons disease also have tremors and may develop cognitive problems, including memory loss and dementia.

Parkinson disease is most common in people who are older than 50. The average age at which it occurs is 60. But some younger people may also get Parkinson disease. When it affects someone younger than age 50, it’s called early-onset Parkinson disease. You may be more likely to get early-onset Parkinson disease if someone in your family has it. The older you are, the greater your risk of developing Parkinson disease. It’s also much more common in men than in women.

Parkinson disease is a chronic and progressive disease. It doesn’t go away and continues to get worse over time.

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Is Parkinsons Disease Fatal

Parkinsons disease itself doesnt cause death. However, symptoms related to Parkinsons can be fatal. For example, injuries that occur because of a fall or problems associated with dementia can be fatal.

Some people with Parkinsons experience difficulty swallowing. This can lead to aspiration pneumonia. This condition is caused when foods, or other foreign objects, are inhaled into the lungs.

What Medications Are Used To Treat Parkinsons Disease

Medications are the main treatment method for patients with Parkinsons disease. Your doctor will work closely with you to develop a treatment plan best suited for you based on the severity of your disease at the time of diagnosis, side effects of the drug class and success or failure of symptom control of the medications you try.

Medications combat Parkinsons disease by:

Helping nerve cells in the brain make dopamine.
Mimicking the effects of dopamine in the brain.
Blocking an enzyme that breaks down dopamine in the brain.
Reducing some specific symptoms of Parkinsons disease.

Levodopa: Levodopa is a main treatment for the slowness of movement, tremor, and stiffness symptoms of Parkinsons disease. Nerve cells use levodopa to make dopamine, which replenishes the low amount found in the brain of persons with Parkinsons disease. Levodopa is usually taken with carbidopa to allow more levodopa to reach the brain and to prevent or reduce the nausea and vomiting, low blood pressure and other side effects of levodopa. Sinemet® is available in an immediate release formula and a long-acting, controlled release formula. Rytary® is a newer version of levodopa/carbidopa that is a longer-acting capsule. The newest addition is Inbrija®, which is inhaled levodopa. It is used by people already taking regular carbidopa/levodopa for when they have off episodes .

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Characteristics Of Parkinson’s Disease