Parkinson's disease. (includes related articles) (Cover Story)

The Parkinson Profile

Parkinson's disease is a disorder of the central nervous system. Its principal symptoms are tremors, rigidity of limbs, and slowness of movement of torso, hands and legs. Maintaining equilibrium of balance is difficult and stressful.

Other characteristics are: loss of facial expression, difficulty in walking, changing positions in bed, dressing, bathing, talking and bending.

Symptoms of Parkinson's disease begin insidiously, becoming apparent on one side of the body and gradually worsening.

It is not a rare disease, but because it is not contagious and not reportable, no one knows how prevalent the problem has become. According to reputable estimates, more than two million people in the United States suffer from this neurological disease.

At least one misconception has gained belief among both the public and the medical profession, that Parkinson's disease is exclusively an ailment of the elderly. Symptoms may appear at any age, but are uncommon before age 30.

Although not considered hereditary, the disease occasionally appears within families, affecting siblings, parents, and grandparents.

The cause of the disease is not known, but many people succumbed after the epidemics of encephalitis that spread around the world between 1918 and 1925. A motion picture, Awakenings, based on Dr. Oliver Sacks' book, dramatized the epidemic effectively.

Parkinson's disease is the result of degenerative changes found in the central nuclei of the brain (basal ganglia) caused by a deficiency of a chemical substance known as dopamine.

Dopamine is formed in the nerve cells to facilitate transmissions of nerve impulses (messages) between these cells and other parts of the brain.

If dopamine is lacking, there is interference with the efficient passage of nerve messages which are essential to proper functioning of the neurological system. Fortunately, several medications have been developed that can modify some of the…