Parkinson’s disease is a progressive nervous system disorder that affects movement. Parkinson’s disease affects the nerve cells in the brain that produce dopamine. Although Parkinson’s disease cannot be cured, medications might significantly improve your symptoms especially in the early stages of the disease.
How do you know that you have Parkinson’s disease?
In the early stages of Parkinson’s disease, your face may show little or no expression. Your arms may not swing when you walk. Your speech may become soft or slurred. Parkinson’s disease symptoms worsen as your condition progresses over time.
Parkinson’s disease signs and symptoms can be different for everyone. Early signs may be mild and go unnoticed. Symptoms often begin on one side of your body and usually remain worse on that side, even after symptoms begin to affect both sides.
What are some signs and symptoms of Parkinson’s disease?
The three main symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are:
• involuntary shaking of particular parts of the body (tremor)
• slow movement
• stiff and inflexible muscles
A person with Parkinson’s disease can also experience a wide range of other physical and psychological symptoms, including:
• depression and anxiety
• balance problems – this may increase the chance of a fall
• loss of sense of smell (anosmia)
• problems sleeping (insomnia)
• memory problems
When to see a doctor
See your doctor if you have any of the symptoms associated with Parkinson’s disease — not only to diagnose your condition but also to rule out other causes for your symptoms.
What causes Parkinson’s disease?
Parkinson’s disease is caused by a loss of nerve cells in part of the brain called the substantia nigra. This leads to a reduction in a chemical called dopamine in the brain.
Dopamine plays a vital role in regulating the movement of the body. A reduction in dopamine is responsible for many of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.
Exactly what causes the loss of nerve cells is unclear. Most experts think that a combination of genetic and environmental factors is responsible.
Risk factors
Risk factors for Parkinson’s disease include:
• Age. Young adults rarely experience Parkinson’s disease. It ordinarily begins in middle or late life, and the risk increases with age. People usually develop the disease around age 60 or older.
• Heredity. Having a close relative with Parkinson’s disease increases the chances that you’ll develop the disease. However, your risks are still small unless you have many relatives in your family with Parkinson’s disease.
• Sex. Men are more likely to develop Parkinson’s disease than women.
• Exposure to toxins. Ongoing exposure to herbicides and pesticides may slightly increase your risk of Parkinson’s disease.
Treating Parkinson’s disease
Although there’s currently no cure for Parkinson’s disease, treatments are available to help reduce the main symptoms and maintain quality of life for as long as possible.
These include:
• supportive treatments – such as physiotherapy and occupational therapy
• medication
• in some cases, brain surgery
You may not need any treatment during the early stages of Parkinson’s disease because symptoms are usually mild. However, you may need regular appointments with your doctor so that your condition can be monitored.
What is the difference between tremors and Parkinson’s disease?
The most common cause of tremor (involuntary shaking) is a condition called essential tremor. Both essential tremor (ET) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) are movement disorders. A movement disorder can be defined as any disease or injury that interferes with an individual’s movement.
Essential tremor and Parkinson’s disease are different conditions but are sometimes associated because they share many features.
Essential tremor is a disease of the body’s system of nerves characterized by tremors. Areas affected most often include the hands, arms, head, and sometimes the voice. Essential tremor does not affect life expectancy, but it can become disabling for many common activities such as writing and eating. Essential tremor also does not increase the risk for Parkinson’s disease.
Conclusion
Parkinson’s disease is a chronic, progressive brain and nerve disease that affects a small area of nerve cells (neurons) in an area of the brain. These cells normally produce dopamine, a chemical (neurotransmitter) that transmits signals between areas in the brain. In Parkinson’s disease there is a loss of dopamine and this leads to a loss of the ability to control body movements normally. If you have symptoms suggestive of Parkinson’s disease the most important thing to do is to seek professional help. Taking action early will enable you to understand and deal with the many effects of your condition.
Ask Your Dr is a health education column and is not a substitute for medical advice from your physician. The reader should consult his or her physician for specific information concerning specific medical conditions. While all reasonable efforts have been made to ensure that all information presented is accurate, as research and development in the medical field are ongoing, it is possible that new findings may supersede some data presented.
Dr Brett Hodge MB BS DGO MRCOG is an obstetrician/Gynaecologist and Family Doctor with over thirty-six years in clinical practice. Dr Brett Hodge has a medical practice in The Johnson Building in The Valley (Tel: 264 497 5928).
