home
RSS
October 4th, 2010
05:20 PM ET

Clues found to early Parkinson's deaths

A study published Monday found that  Parkinson’s disease patients who scored worst on movement tests and those suffering from dementia or psychotic episodes such as hallucinations all faced a higher risk of dying earlier from the disease.

Tremors by themselves were not a risk factor, and neither anti-psychotic nor anti-Parkinson’s drug treatments affected survival, research published in the current issue of the  journal Neurology concluded.

The 12-year Norwegian study looked at 230 Parkinson’s patients, 211 of whom had died by the end of the research.

“Remarkably, time of death for these people took anywhere from two to 37 years from diagnosis, so it’s important we try to identify those risk factors that lead to an early death so we can find ways to increase a person’s life expectancy,” lead researcher Dr. Elin Bjelland Forsaa said in a statement.

Patients in the study lived an average of 16 years with Parkinson’s. The average age at death was 80 for men and 82 for women.

The cause of Parkinson’s is not known, and there is no cure. People develop Parkinson’s when clusters of cells in the midbrain die, cutting down production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter responsible for coordinated muscle movement.

As a result, unmedicated Parkinson's patients tend to have muscle rigidity, lack of facial expression, a stooped posture, halting gait and tremors.

Doctors are only able to treat Parkinson’s symptoms, usually by replacing dopamine with the drug L-dopa. No treatments currently exist to slow the progression of the disease.

“Our findings suggest that treatments to prevent or delay the progression of movement problems, psychosis and dementia in people with Parkinson’s could help people live longer,” said Forsaa at Stavanger University Hospital in Stavanger, Norway.

Dr. David Charles, a neurologist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and chief medical officer at Vanderbilt Neuroscience Isntitute, said the finding that anti-psychotic medications did not affect mortality in Parkinson’s patients would mean doctors would be less hesitant to prescribe them. Anti-psychotic medications have been associated with increased mortality in Alzheimer’s patients.

An estimated 1 million Americans have Parkinson’s disease. Some 50,000 Americans learn they have the disease each year, most over 50 years old.

Neurology is published by the American Academy of Neurology.


soundoff (831 Responses)
  1. ソフト闇金

    Heya i'm for the primary time here. I found this board and
    I to find It truly helpful & it helped me out much. I am hoping to present one thing back and help others such as you aided me.

    June 26, 2021 at 02:13 | Report abuse | Reply
  2. pharmacepticacom

    chloroquine natural sources https://pharmaceptica.com/

    June 26, 2021 at 04:34 | Report abuse | Reply
  3. www.pharmaceptica.com

    improving erectile dysfunction https://www.pharmaceptica.com/

    June 26, 2021 at 17:18 | Report abuse | Reply
  4. hickory beer fest

    Hi there, always i used to check web site posts here
    in the early hours in the daylight, since i love
    to find out more and more.

    June 26, 2021 at 19:47 | Report abuse | Reply
  5. baccarat onepiece

    Tỷ Lệ Bóng ĐáBiến Động Tỷ Lệ Kèo Nhà Cái Thụy Điển Vs Ba Lan Hôm Nay 23 vip room casinoHai trận đấu của lượt cuối mỗi bảng bắt buộc phải thi đấu cùng giờ. Kết thúc vòng bảng, đội nhất, nhì các bảng và 4 đội xếp thứ ba có thành tích tốt nhất sẽ giành quyền vào vòng 16 đội.

    https://www.vnd188.bet/

    June 26, 2021 at 19:58 | Report abuse | Reply
  6. Google

    Very good write-up. I absolutely love this website.
    Keep it up!

    June 26, 2021 at 20:06 | Report abuse | Reply
  7. Um Lugar Silencioso Parte 2

    I always used to study piece of writing in news papers but now as I
    am a user of internet therefore from now I am using net for posts, thanks to web.

    June 26, 2021 at 23:50 | Report abuse | Reply
  8. Tpe sex doll

    Useful information. Lucky me I found your web site unintentionally, and I am surprised why this
    accident did not came about in advance! I bookmarked it.

    June 27, 2021 at 04:30 | Report abuse | Reply
  9. www.pharmaceptica.com

    sildenafil 110 mg https://www.pharmaceptica.com/

    June 27, 2021 at 05:20 | Report abuse | Reply
  10. www.pharmaceptica.com

    200 mg sildenafil https://www.pharmaceptica.com/

    June 27, 2021 at 14:13 | Report abuse | Reply
  11. The Adventures of Robin Hood series

    You have made some really good points there. I looked on the web
    for more information about the issue and found most people will
    go along with your views on this website.

    June 28, 2021 at 12:29 | Report abuse | Reply
  12. www.pharmaceptica.com

    tadalafil troche https://www.pharmaceptica.com/

    June 28, 2021 at 22:29 | Report abuse | Reply
  13. pharmaceptica.com

    hydrocloroquine https://www.pharmaceptica.com/

    June 29, 2021 at 00:37 | Report abuse | Reply
  14. tmc consulting

    Hello, this weekend is good in favor of me, for the reason that this moment i am reading
    this wonderful informative paragraph here at my home.

    June 29, 2021 at 06:01 | Report abuse | Reply
  15. authentic money

    Amazing! This blog looks just like my old one! It's on a completely different subject but it has pretty much the same page layout and design. Wonderful choice of colors!

    June 29, 2021 at 09:28 | Report abuse | Reply
  16. city it training ltd

    Hi! I just want to offer you a big thumbs up for the excellent information you have got here on this post.
    I will be coming back to your blog for more soon.

    June 29, 2021 at 11:33 | Report abuse | Reply
  17. videochat iași

    Valuable info. Fortunate me I discovered your website
    by chance, and I'm surprised why this coincidence didn't took place in advance!
    I bookmarked it.

    June 29, 2021 at 11:54 | Report abuse | Reply
  18. pharmaceptica

    erectile organs crossword clue https://pharmaceptica.com/

    June 29, 2021 at 14:52 | Report abuse | Reply
  19. Homepage

    Great goods from you, man. I have bear in mind your stuff
    prior to and you're just extremely great. I really like what you've acquired right here,
    really like what you are stating and the way wherein you are saying it.

    You are making it entertaining and you still care for to keep it sensible.
    I can't wait to read much more from you. That is really a terrific web site.

    June 29, 2021 at 15:49 | Report abuse | Reply
  20. where to buy crypto

    Hi there are using WordPress for your site platform? I'm new to
    the blog world but I'm trying to get started and create my own.
    Do you require any html coding knowledge to make your own blog?
    Any help would be greatly appreciated!

    June 29, 2021 at 18:28 | Report abuse | Reply
  21. click hrer

    Hi, I do believe this is an excellent website.
    I stumbledupon it 😉 I may return once again since i have bookmarked it.
    Money and freedom is the greatest way to change, may you be
    rich and continue to help other people.

    June 29, 2021 at 18:37 | Report abuse | Reply
  22. sbobet

    It's going to be ending of mine day, except before end I am reading this wonderful piece of writing
    to increase my know-how.

    June 30, 2021 at 00:53 | Report abuse | Reply
  23. Home Listings Nigeria is a Nigerian real estate and home listings website that offers property and houses for rent and sale in Nigeria

    Hi! Someone in my Facebook group shared this site with us so
    I came to look it over. I'm definitely loving the information. I'm book-marking and will be tweeting this to my
    followers! Exceptional blog and outstanding design.

    June 30, 2021 at 09:16 | Report abuse | Reply
  24. Kleine Sexpuppen

    I feel that is one of the such a lot significant information for me.
    And i'm glad reading your article. However should commentary on few normal things, The web site
    taste is great, the articles is truly great : D. Excellent job, cheers

    June 30, 2021 at 12:52 | Report abuse | Reply
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

Leave a Reply to domino99


 

CNN welcomes a lively and courteous discussion as long as you follow the Rules of Conduct set forth in our Terms of Service. Comments are not pre-screened before they post. You agree that anything you post may be used, along with your name and profile picture, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and the license you have granted pursuant to our Terms of Service.

Advertisement
About this blog

Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.