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Questions Most Frequently Asked About Parkinson's and the Answers

There are usually a lot of questions, especially when someone is newly diagnosed. This is true about any disease. When the disease is a chronic or progressive disease this is particularly true and Parkinson's is both a chronic disease and a progressive disease.

One commonly asked question is regarding the cause of Parkinson's disease. People are interested in knowing what it is that causes the disease so that they can avoid the cause and thus avoid the disease or have something to blame if they already have Parkinson's. There is no clear, definitive cause that scientists can determine conclusively so as of at this time there is no known cause for Parkinson's disease.

Another questions that people often wonder about is whether or not Parkinson's is an inherited disease, in other words does it run in families? The main theory is that it is not an inherited disease although there can be more than one person in a family diagnosed with Parkinson's. Scientists explain that occurrence by stating that Parkinson's is a common disease among those who are older than 65. There is a higher probability that you will have more than one family member with a disease simply because the disease is such a common one for that age bracket.

Individuals with Parkinson's disease want to know how fast they can expect the disease to progress. Parkinson's is a progressive disease but it typically is slow to progress. It can take decades to get to the later stages of the disease. New symptoms will appear as the disease progresses over the years. In a few cases the disease will progress rapidly, but this is not the usual case. When the disease does progress rapidly the cause is usually an outside factor that has contributed to the rapid progression such as another health issue or the treatments for another health issue that may interfere with the management of Parkinson's.

Perhaps one of the most commonly asked question is, "What is Parkinson's disease?" Parkinson's disease is a chronic (long-term) and progressive (becomes worse over time) disease. It is a neurological disease in which the individual inflicted with it loses neurotransmitter dopamine cells, which are part of the brain structure that controls movement. This explains the fact that so many of the symptoms of the disease have to do with movement such as slowness of movements, difficulty getting started making a movement, and difficulties with balance and walking gait.

It is important that if you are seeking a diagnosis for Parkinson's disease or if you are newly diagnosed with the disease or care about someone who has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease that you prepare a list of questions that you have before going to your appointment with your doctor. Your doctor is the best source of answers to all of your questions about Parkinson's disease.