Wisdom & Advice from People Living with Parkinson’s Disease The voice of our Parkinson’s disease (PD) community is vibrant and full of excellent advice. And we know that hearing from those who have “been there” can be particularly helpful. For this article, we specifically consulted those who have more than a decade of experience with PD […]
Writing Big: Parkinson’s Disease & Handwriting For today’s topic, we enlisted the expertise of Andie Hill, an Occupational Therapy student at the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota. Recently, she has worked with APDA’s Northwest Chapter, helping people with PD manage various symptoms of PD and improve their quality of life, including issues with […]
Levodopa and Parkinson’s Disease When prescribed, levodopa is extremely effective in treating the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and is embraced by many with PD. Many individuals see using Levodopa as a vital ingredient in maintaining movement and quality of life. It is the most prescribed medication for PD and has been the mainstay […]
Q&A with Dr. Abby Olsen on Glial Cells in Parkinson’s Disease Treatment A conversation about genes in glial helper cells (and fruit flies!) Our A Closer Look blog is designed to educate, inform, and inspire you through a variety of topics and insights about Parkinson’s disease (PD). One way we do that is through our Interview with APDA […]
The Importance of Bone Health and Parkinson’s Disease Falls can be a major difficulty for people with Parkinson’s disease (PD), leading to fractures and other injuries. People with PD are at increased risk of fracture, with a four times higher risk of hip fracture as compared with the general population. Often, a person with PD […]
End-Stage Parkinson’s Disease & Risk of Death It’s hard to think about the tough stuff. The what ifs, the worst-case scenarios, the unknowns. Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive condition, which means that it gets worse with time. However, for many people, the worsening is gradual, maybe even imperceptible at times. This affords you many […]
How John Became an Unlikely Celebrity When John Capone was first diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease (PD) at the young age of 39, he never imagined acting in a movie with A-list celebrities. The news of his diagnosis was tough to handle at first, and he quickly became overwhelmed by depression and anxiety. But this tough […]
How Geography, high altitude and cold weather can play a role Through APDA’s Ask the Doctor portal, we receive many questions on a vast array of topics. (Feel free to submit your own question at any time.) Many readers have noted that geographic or seasonal factors seem to impact their Parkinson’s disease (PD) symptoms and […]
Non-Invasive Devices to Suppress Tremors For some people with Parkinson’s disease (PD), medication doses treat their tremor very well. However, for others, medication doses are clearly effective for symptoms of slowness and stiffness, but they are ineffective for their tremor. In these cases, deep brain stimulation (DBS) or focused ultrasound may be suggested to help […]
Currently, Parkinson’s disease (PD) diagnosis is based on a visual clinical exam, done by a doctor (ideally a neurologist or movement disorder specialist) in their office. This means that motor symptoms such as tremor, stiffness and slowness must be apparent before a diagnosis is made by the neurologist – yet those visible symptoms don’t often […]
