Wednesday, April 17, 2024

Parkinson’s Disease Research Paper

Atherosclerosis Is The Hardening Of The Walls Of Arteries

Parkinson’s Disease Research: Participating in Research Studies

Sometimes, some patients do not have the proper disorder but can show symptoms of it for a period of time until diagnosed appropriately .

Anatomically, the basal ganglia are a brain mechanism involved in movement. It is located beneath the cerebral cortex and includes five nuclei. These are the globus pallidus, caudate nucleus, putamen, subthalamic nucleus, and substantia nigra. The globus pallidus is divided into internal and external regions, and the substantia nigra is also divided into two regions: the dorsal and ventral regions.

The caudate nucleus and putamen are together known as striatum .

The function of the basal ganglia is to prepare the body for voluntary movement. Processing is done for planning, triggering, and organizing the adjustment of the persons posture .

For example, getting up from a chair and to start walking is a voluntary movement. However, when affected with Parkinsons disease, the basal ganglia can no longer function the way it is supposed to. The basal ganglia contain 80% of the brains dopamine.

Parkinsons disease is caused by the death of these dopaminergic neurons that project between the striatum and the substantia nigra pars compacta or the dorsal part of the substantia nigra .

It can be considered that the greater the loss of dopaminergic neurons, the greater the loss of movement in an individual. By the time there is an onset of Parkinsons symptoms, 60-70% of dopaminergic neurons have already been lost .

First Line Dopamine Agonist Treatment

The dilemma of first line treatment in PD is therefore this: dopamine agonists produce fewer motor complications and the same QoL scores, but the price for this is a higher incidence of side effects and reduced efficacy as determined by the UPDRS. There has been a general belief that the potential for side effects with dopa agonist monotherapy is much greater in elderly patients, but studies with the newer agonists do not bear this out and these drugs can be well tolerated in patients over 75 years. However, as suggested above, additional caution is required in using agonists in the elderly.

The decision on which dopamine agonist to initiate is often an empirical one. There have been few head-to-head comparative studies between the agonists. Cabergoline is an ergot derivative with a high affinity for the D2 and D3 receptors. However, there have been increasing reports of non-inflammatory fibrotic degeneration of cardiac valves with the ergot agonists,, specifically cabergoline and pergolide, and for this reason, they are no longer recommended as first-line treatments. Regular monitoring including ESR, chest X-ray and 6-monthly echocardiography are recommended for those continuing on ergot-derived agonists.

Commonly used non-ergot-derived dopamine agonists include ropinirole, pramipexole and rotigotine. An uncommon, but important, side effect most frequently reported to date with pramipexole is an increased risk of pathological gambling.,

Parkinsons Disease Sample Essay & Outline

Parkinsons disease is one of the diseases that affects millions of people in the United States alone. I was therefore, interested in the way this disease worked and the way it affects persons. I was especially interested in its relation with the endocrine system as there were several studies that had showed there was a relation between the two. Therefore, this made this topic more interesting and I wanted to find more information regarding it. It is through this literature that I stumbled upon an article on endocrinology. I found an article that discussed the effect of Parkinson disease on the endocrine system and dysfunction of the system. The whole idea was important to me as I wanted to understand the information better and understand the correlation that existed between the two. The article was on a study regarding the prevalence of endocrine dysfunction in subjects with idiopathic Parkinsons disease referred to as IPD on the newer dopaminergic agents . The article discussed whether indeed the Parkinsons disease was related to newer dopaminergic agents.

The results were able to justify the conclusion, in that they showed that the newer DA do not often cause significant endocrine dysfunction.

Also Check: Home Exercise For Parkinson Disease

Relationship Between Cancer And Alzheimer ‘s Disease

2012 discussed the relationship between cancer and Alzheimers disease, using hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals. From this, it was concluded that cancer vulnerability may protect against Alzheimers, and vice versa. It was suggested that this may be due to both diseases sharing similar genes and proteins, providing even more reason to research further into proteins such as the immunophilins, which have a role in both diseases. Analysis of genes from large databases would further improve

Parkinsons Disease : A Brief Overview

Parkinson

Parkinsons Disease is a serious neurodegenerative disorder that affects approximately one million people in the U.S. . The disease is usually characterized by the following symptoms: impaired gait, bradykinesia, rigidity, tremors, diminished expression, kyphotic posture, seborrhea, and sialorrhea .

PD is the disease of elderly people, since its early onset usually happens between 40 and 60 years of age . However, one form of PD can be particularly dangerous for teens . PD is believed to be caused by the lack of dopamine in the human brain . In rare cases, head trauma can trigger the development of PD .

Scientists were able to identify and describe the genetic factors and predictors of PD, but the exact mechanisms of PD, especially in teens, remain unknown . PD is a complex disorder that affects all spheres of life and produces heavy influences on physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing. Given the complexity of the disorder and its effects on patient wellbeing, its physical, neurological, emotional, and spiritual aspects need to be better understood.

Read Also: Parkinson’s Support Group Connecticut

Review Of Research Paper On Parkinson’s Disease Treatment

down the progression of Parkinsons disease have largely failed researchers in this paper maintain this is obviously a direct result of the lack of insight into the pathogenesis of the disease. Parkinsons disease is the product of the deaths of a number of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta region of the brain. But what causes these deaths? In the paper Rejuvenation protects neurons in mouse models of Parkinsons disease, Chen and researchers

Article Of The Year 2020

Update on the Management of Parkinsons Disease for General Neurologists

Journal profile

Parkinsons Disease publishes research related to the epidemiology, etiology, pathogenesis, genetics, cellular, molecular and neurophysiology, as well as the diagnosis and treatment of Parkinsons disease.

Editor spotlight

Parkinson’s Disease maintains an Editorial Board of practicing researchers from around the world, to ensure manuscripts are handled by editors who are experts in the field of study.

Special Issues

Recommended Reading: Wearable Technology For Parkinson Disease

The Essay On Parkinsons Disease 3

… reaches the brain. Like the symptoms of Parkinson?s disease itself, the side effects of drugs vary from patient to patient. They may … surgeons would implant millions of fetal pig cells into the brains of Parkinson?s patients. Without hesitation, Finn agreed to the surgery … drills through the skull and destroys selected brain cells, and deep brain stimulation, in which electrodes are implanted in …

However, it is understood that these medications can cause Parkinson-like symptoms but not the brain disorder itself .

The first drugs known to cause Parkinson-like symptoms were used to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia and psychosis .

These drugs are known as tranquilizers and include haldol, prolixin, stellazine, and thorazine .

Drugs that are used to treat symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder, psychosis and schizophrenia known as orap, risperidal, and zyprexa also caused symptoms of Parkinson-like symptoms .

Another drug that was used by young drug users was known as MPTP. It is a synthetic heroin that gives rise to permanent Parkinson-like symptoms. Almost all the motor symptoms become apparent including tremors, rigidity, slowness of movement, postural instability and freezing .

A condition that could elicit Parkinson-like symptoms is known as the Shy-Drager Syndrome. This syndrome consists of chronic degeneration of the autonomic system, much like Parkinsons disease .

How Is Parkinsons Disease Diagnosed

Parkinson’s Disease Research

There are currently no specific tests that diagnose PD. The diagnosis is based on:

  • medical history and a neurological examination
  • blood and laboratory tests, to rule out other disorders that may be causing the symptoms
  • brain scans to rule out other disorders. However, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging brain scans of people with PD usually appear normal.

In rare cases, where people have a clearly inherited form of PD, researchers can test for known gene mutations as a way of determining an individuals risk of developing the disease. However, this genetic testing can have far-reaching implications and people should carefully consider whether they want to know the results of such tests.

Read Also: Does Sam Waterston Have Parkinson

Motor Circuit In Parkinson Disease

The basal ganglia motor circuit modulates the cortical output necessary for normal movement .

Signals from the cerebral cortex are processed through the basal ganglia-thalamocortical motor circuit and return to the same area via a feedback pathway. Output from the motor circuit is directed through the internal segment of the globus pallidus and the substantia nigra pars reticulata . This inhibitory output is directed to the thalamocortical pathway and suppresses movement.

Two pathways exist within the basal ganglia circuit, the direct and indirect pathways, as follows:

  • In the direct pathway, outflow from the striatum directly inhibits the GPi and SNr striatal neurons containing D1 receptors constitute the direct pathway and project to the GPi/SNr

  • The indirect pathway contains inhibitory connections between the striatum and the external segment of the globus pallidus and between the GPe and the subthalamic nucleus striatal neurons with D2 receptors are part of the indirect pathway and project to the GPe

The STN exerts an excitatory influence on the GPi and SNr. The GPi/SNr sends inhibitory output to the ventral lateral nucleus of the thalamus. Dopamine is released from nigrostriatal neurons to activate the direct pathway and inhibit the indirect pathway. In Parkinson disease, decreased striatal dopamine causes increased inhibitory output from the GPi/SNr via both the direct and indirect pathways .

Study Procedures And Assessments

Participants visit the study site three times for data collection: an initial baseline visit and two annual follow-up visits. Data collection during each visit takes a full day and can be spread out over a 1.5-day period if desired by the patient. Prior to each visit, study participants will be offered a complimentary hotel stay, thereby reducing the need for patients living far away from the study center to travel long distances in the early morning. Patients arrive at the study site in the morning in a practically defined OFF state, i.e., at least 12h after having taken their last dopaminergic PD medication.

Table 1 Overview of included study measures and scales in the Personalized Parkinson Project

After each visit participants complete a set of validated questionnaires at home, including questionnaires about medication use, quality of life, lifestyle, neuropsychological symptoms, autonomic symptoms, sleep, and vision, among others . These questionnaires are completed within 4weeks after each visit, via an online survey module.

Finally, a copy of the medical record of the participants primary care physician is requested. This provides a rich information source of known and unknown markers of disease progression.

Fig. 1

The Verily Study Watch , along with syncing/charging cradle and Study Hub. The photographs are owned by Verily and have a copyright. Verily kindly granted written permission to use and adopt if for this publication

Read Also: Drugs Prescribed For Parkinson’s Disease

How Can People Cope With Parkinson’s Disease

While PD usually progresses slowly, eventually daily routines may be affectedfrom socializing with friends to earning a living and taking care of a home. These changes can be difficult to accept. Support groups can help people cope with the diseases emotional impact. These groups also can provide valuable information, advice, and experience to help people with PD, their families, and their caregivers deal with a wide range of issues, including locating doctors familiar with the disease and coping with physical limitations. A list of national organizations that can help people locate support groups in their communities appears at the end of this information. Individual or family counseling may also help people find ways to cope with PD.

People with PD may also benefit from being proactive and finding out as much as possible about the disease in order to alleviate fear of the unknown and to take a positive role in maintaining their health. Many people with PD continue to work either full- or part-time, although they may need to adjust their schedule and working environment to accommodate their symptoms.

The Essay On The Fabry Disease Symptoms Pains Disorder

Parkinsons Disease Research Paper Example

The Fabry Disease Classification The Fabry Disease is a hereditary disorder, caused by the lack A. It is an x-linked recessive inheritance. Therefore it is the females that carry it. The ones who are mostly affected by this disease are the males. Female carriers, though, may develop and may have problems with burning pains. Very few of the carriers may also have kidney or heart problems. This …

It is clear that both the non-motor and motor symptoms are of concern when it comes to an individuals ability to be able to carry out everyday functions and how difficult it can become if these functions become impaired.

The following section of this research paper will discuss the causes and brain mechanisms of Parkinsons disease and try to provide a biological perspective to the disorder. In this attempt, the anatomy, pathophysiology, and the processes of brain cell death will be discussed along with some of the major causes of Parkinsons disease. Causes and Brain Mechanisms Parkinsons disease arises greatly in older adults mainly due to the reason of dopamine not being released by neurons of the substantia nigra.

The dopamine is used as a chemical that provides smooth muscle movement in the body. It works as a messenger to the striatum that is responsible for the movements of the body, balance, and walking .

In general, there is a consideration of two main causes of Parkinsons disease one is idiopathic and the other is genetics or inheritance.

Don’t Miss: How To Test Yourself For Parkinson’s

Symptoms Of Parkinsons Disease

The cardinal features of PD are tremor, bradykinesia, postural instability, muscle rigidity and motor blocks , however there are also a wide range of other motor and non-motor symptoms.

Rest tremor is the most common and easily recognised symptom of PD, present in 70% to 75% of cases. The tremors occur at a frequency of 4 to 6 Hz and are prominent at the distal part of an extremity such as the hands and can also involve lips, chin, jaw and legs. Rest tremors typically disappear with action and during sleep.

Bradykinesia is characterised by a slowness of initiating voluntary movement and in sustaining repetitive movements with progressive reduction in speed and amplitude and is the most characteristic feature of PD. Bradykinesia is symptomatic of all basal ganglia disorders and is typified by difficulty with performing sequential and simultaneous tasks. According to Jahanshahi et al. the initial manifestation of PD is often slowness in performing the normal activities of daily life, especially those tasks requiring fine motor control.

Particularly in its early stages, PD is characterised by a predominantly unilateral appearance of the motor symptoms . This sidedness can be so conspicuous that it often serves as a clinical parameter to differentiate the disease from other neurodegenerative Parkinsonian syndromes, for example, in multiple system atrophy, diffuse Lewy body disease and progressive supra-nuclear palsy, there is usually no side predominance .

Psychosis And Confusion In Pd

Psychosis can occur in up to 30% of PD patients. It often presents with hallucinations which are usually visual together with delusions and agitation or sometimes aggression. Patients may become paranoid particularly towards partners or other family members. Psychosis is possibly mediated by loss of dopaminergic neurones particularly in the nigro-mesolimbic projections. It is often a feature in the development of PDD or DLB.

Most of the older antipsychotic agents tend to substantially worsen motor symptoms and should be avoided. The newer atypical antipsychotic agents such as quetiapine and clozapine are better tolerated and often effective. Clozapine requires close monitoring of the white cell count because of a 1% incidence of agranulocytosis. Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors may also be beneficial in reducing hallucinations and delusions in PD patients.

You May Like: Caring For Someone With Parkinson’s

Categories Of Parkinsons Disease

Two categories of Parkinsons disease have been distinguished as the idiopathic or primary PD and secondary PD. Idiopathic or Primary PD is defined by the presence of a certain symptom-complex but its main cause is still unknown.

Idiopathic PD falls under the ICD-10 Category G20. Secondary PD has similar symptoms to PD but the cause is known. These diseases fall under ICD-10 Category G21 .

Secondary PD includes the malignant neuroleptic syndrome as well as other drug-induced Parkinsonism such as those caused by neuroleptic drugs , antiemetic agents , gastro-intestinal anti-motility drugs , antihypertenstive drugs and some calcium-channel blockers.

Other secondary Parkinsonism is caused by the environmental factors such as toxicity, trauma, metabolic derangement and brain tumor. The knowledge of the cause of Parkinsons symptoms hints the best treatment. For instance, Parkinsonism induced by drug usually disappears within weeks to months after medication is discontinued.

However, recent studies have reported that symptoms can be permanent in about 15% of people. The diagnosis of the two types of Parkinsons disease is the same but both have different medical treatment and prognosis. In addition, supporting evidence has also shown that both idiopathic and secondary PDs have similar impact on the individuals .

Biometrics And Keystroke Dynamics

Dr. Gilbert Hosts: Clinical Trials & Research Participation for Parkinsons Disease

The use of keystrokes as a means of identification has a long history. Das et al. used keystroke dynamics while typing a computer login string to identify users with 90% to 99% accuracy. Their technique involved key hold times and latency, using a Gaussian mixture model and a neural network. This, and many other similar studies , demonstrate that keystroke characteristics can be used very accurately to classify the features of particular users.

Keystroke dynamic features can be extracted using the timing information of the key press and release events. The hold time of individual keys and the latency between keys are typically exploited . In addition to ordered pairs , n-tuples of a sequence of keystrokes have also been investigated and keystroke biometrics research has utilised many machine learning and classification techniques.

Don’t Miss: Parkinson’s Multiple System Atrophy

Popular Articles
Related news