Parkinson's Disease: The Shaking Palsy
Parkinson’s disease is a neurological condition that affects the movement of the body. The disease was discovered by British doctor James Parkinson in 1817. It is a movement disorder that progresses slowly. Though tremor or shaking is the most common symptom of Parkinson’s disease, this disorder also causes stiffness or slowness movement. Signs and Symptoms: Causes: The progressive deterioration of the nerve cells in the brain area called substantia nigra. These nerve cells produces dopamine which acts as a chemical messenger between substantia nigra and corpus striatum. The communication between the two is vital for the coordination of a smooth and balanced movement of the muscle. Thus, the lack of dopamine will result to the inability to control body movements. Risk factors: Treatment There is no treatment for Parkinson’s diseasebut there are measures which can be done to improve the patients condition. Medication or drugs is the standard way for treatment. If the disease worsens, surgery is needed. Some of the medications that doctors usually give are: Surgeries that may be done are: Research are continually done to identify and locate the genes that causes Parkinson’s disease. There are also medical experiments and therapies undergoing to improve and relieve the symptoms of this disease. Living with this disease, and any other chronic illnesses, is difficult. It can be depressing both for the patient and its family. But the love and support of each other will help the fight bearable for everyone.
Published at: 04/10/2015
