Parkinson’s Disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that often impairs the sufferer’s motor skills and speech. Parkinson’s Disease belongs to a group of conditions called movement disorders. Characteristic symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease include tremors in the hands, legs, arms and face. Rigidity of limbs and torso, poor balance and co-ordination, impaired speech and dementia are also symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease.
Causes
Alpha-synuclein is believed to be one of the key components in the pathology of Parkinson’s Disease. It is normally found in cells all over the body. However, in Parkinson’s, it forms aggregates inside nerve cells. These aggregates accumulate with other miss-folded or miss-processed proteins and form Lewy Bodies. Recent research suggests that alpha-synuclein fibrils are toxic to nerve cells and once Lewy bodies appear, neurones become less well able to work normally and will eventually die.
Parkinson’s Disease results from the degeneration of dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra – the “movement control center” of the brain. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, or chemical messenger, that participates in sending signals from the brain to the muscles that control motor movements, balance, muscle co-ordination, speech and emotional behavior.
A lack of dopamine in the brain means that part of the vital communication link between brain and body is damaged. While most forms of parkinsonism are idiopathic, there are some cases where the symptoms may result from toxicity, drugs, genetic mutation, head trauma, or other medical disorders.
Cures
Currently there are no cures for Parkinson’s and many of the causes are still not fully understood. Drug treatment is the main method used to control the symptoms of Parkinson’s. The main drug regimes available for the treatment of Parkinson’s are: Levodopa, Dopamine agonists, Apomorphine, Amantadine, Anticholinergics, COMT inhibitors, MAO-B inhibitors.
Prevalence and Cost
- The prevalence of Parkinson’s increases with age, with approximately 1% of those aged 60 years or older affected, 4% or more of those aged 80 years or older, and approximately 5.2% of those in nursing homes.
- Parkinson’s affects up to 1 million people in the United States – with about fifty thousand new diagnoses made each year and up to 5 million worldwide.
- One person in every 500 has Parkinson’s. That’s about 120,000 people in the UK.
- Overall, the annual economic impact of Parkinson’s in the United States is estimated at $10.8 billion.
- Medications to treat Parkinson’s disease can cost a patient between $1,000 and $7,000 per year.
- Given the growing elderly population in the United States, the number of individuals with Parkinson’s is expected to double by 2030.
- Cases of Parkinson’s are reported at all ages, though it is uncommon in people younger than 40. The average age at which symptoms begin in the U.S.A. is 58–60; it is principally a disease of the elderly.
- Parkinson’s occurs in all parts of the world, but appears to be more common in people of European ancestry than in those of African ancestry. Those of East Asian ancestry have an intermediate risk. It is more common in rural than urban areas and men are affected more often than women in most countries.
