Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a disease that causes tremors, muscle stiffness and slow movements. The reason is that you have too little of the signal substance dopamine in the brain. Approximately 1% of everyone between the ages of 50 and 70 has Parkinson's disease.

What is Parkinson's disease?

Parkinson's disease is an incurable disease that affects the brain. In Parkinson's disease, the nerve cells in the brain that make the signal substance dopamine are gradually broken down. Only when 70-80% of these nerve cells are destroyed does the lack of dopamine in the brain become great enough for the typical symptoms of Parkinson's disease to appear.

Causes of Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is caused by the gradual destruction of the dopamine-producing nerve cells in the brain. Why this happens in some people is not completely clear. It is probably due to an interaction between various factors:

Age (risk increases with increasing age)
Heredity (some may be genetically predisposed to developing Parkinson's disease)
Other diseases of the brain, such as Alzheimer's, can predispose to the development of Parkinson's disease
Environmental impact
Use of certain medications can cause parkinson-like symptoms (parkinsonism)

Symptoms of Parkinson's disease

Shaking (tremor), often when sitting still. In 70%, this is the first sign of Parkinson's disease. So-called "pill rolling" with the hands is typical
Muscle stiffness (rigidity). Often, the gait becomes shaky, tripping and with short steps
Difficulty initiating movements (akinesia)
Balance problems. It is common to have problems keeping your balance when standing upright. You often get a forward-bent posture

The symptoms creep in and often start on one side of the body before spreading to both sides.

Additional problems in Parkinson's disease

Those with Parkinson's disease have a significantly increased risk of developing dementia. Other psychological problems that are common in Parkinson's disease are anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances, hallucinations and delusions.

What is Parkinson's disease?

What can you do yourself with Parkinson's disease?

Regular physical activity can make it easier to cope with the problems associated with Parkinson's disease. A physiotherapist can help you set up a training program with special range of motion exercises, walking training and exercises that make daily tasks easier
The right diet helps to ensure that health otherwise remains good
The Help Center can suggest relevant aids to make everyday life easier

Treatment of Parkinson's disease

There are no drugs that can cure Parkinson's disease, but there are drugs that reduce the characteristic symptoms. You start with medication when there is a need for it, that is, when the symptoms become troublesome. After many years of use and as the disease gets worse, the effect of the medicines usually diminishes.

There are four main types of antiparkinsonian drugs. All the different types of medicine try to compensate for the lack of dopamine in the brain. They can be used alone or in combination.

Levodopa is converted to dopamine in the brain. Medicines with levodopa always contain an additional substance that prevents levodopa from being converted into dopamine elsewhere in the body than in the brain. Levodopa can be used alone or in combination with other antiparkinsonian drugs.
COMT inhibitors work by reducing the breakdown of levodopa in the brain, thus making more levodopa available to make dopamine. Always used in combination with levodopa.
MAO inhibitors work by reducing the body's breakdown of dopamine. Can be used alone or in combination with levodopa.
Dopamine agonists: Dopamine agonists mimic dopamine, acting as dopamine would in the brain. Can be used alone or in combination with levodopa.

All anti-Parkinson medicines can cause fatigue both for a short or long time after taking the medicine. Therefore, anyone using antiparkinsonian drugs should be careful when driving or operating machinery. This is particularly important at the start of treatment, before you know how you will react to the medication. Dry mouth and constipation are common side effects when using most antiparkinsonian drugs.

When should you contact a doctor for Parkinson's disease?

If you or someone close to you has one or more of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease
If you experience unacceptable side effects from your medications
If you have developed any of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease after starting a new type of medicine

Sources: Norwegian electronic medical handbook, Norwegian Parkinson's Association, Norwegian health informatics, Pfizer's information pages on Parkinson's disease, Orion Pharma Norway's information pages on Parkinson's disease