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Interesting Facts About Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive and chronic disease that appears when neurons in the brain have degenerated. These neurons are in the region of the brain that control movement which is why many of the symptoms of Parkinson's have to do with bodily movement such as a trembling or shaking of limbs, especially when the body is resting. Other movement symptoms are slow movement, an inability to move, rigid limbs, a stooped posture and a shuffling gait. Other symptoms are reduced facial expressions, and also a soft speaking voice. The disease may cause the person to become depressed, or to experience personality changes, dementia or to experience difficulty sleeping, speech impairments even sexual difficulties. The severity of the symptoms begins slowly and mild but as time goes on the symptoms will worsen.

Parkinson's affects 500,000 people in the United States. There are approximately 50,000 new cases of Parkinson's each year. Parkinson's is more common in males than females. Parkinson's is uncommon in those who are under 40 years of age. The rate of Parkinson's increases after age 70. The disease occurs all over the world.

There is no known cause for Parkinson's disease although researchers are continuing to conduct studies to try to discover the cause and a cure for the disease.

It is difficult to diagnose Parkinson's. There is no blood or other laboratory test to confirm the diagnosis of Parkinson's. The diagnosis is mainly determined based on symptoms. A doctor will basically run tests to rule out other diseases in the quest to determine a diagnosis.

The usual treatment for Parkinson's is levodopa (L-dopa). This medicine replaces the dopamine that is depleted in the brain. Pallidotomy, a brain surgery can be performed when medications do not work. The surgery has been effective in reducing symptoms. A brain transplant is currently being tested to replace dopamine-producing tissue in the brain.

In a lifetime one in every 200 individuals will be diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

In the year 2000, 15,600 deaths occurred where Parkinson's disease was involved.

Approximately 2% of the population in the UK has Parkinson's disease and approximately 1% of the U.S. population over age 65 has been diagnosed with Parkinson's.

Parkinson's is the second most common degenerative disease affecting the nervous system. Parkinson's disease affects more individuals than Lou Gehrig's disease, Multiple Sclerosis and Muscular Dystrophy combined.

The average age for the being diagnosed with Parkinson's is 56 and the youngest is 12, which is really unusual.

Shaking and twitching is usually associated with Parkinson's with some individuals progressing rapidly with other symptoms or in severity and other individuals getting worse slowly over time.

Those with Parkinson's eventually end up with cognitive issues such as the inability to organize or to "think on your feet".