Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD; paralysis agitans) is a neurodegenerative disease of the substantia nigra (an area in the basal ganglia of the brain). The disease was first discovered and its symptoms documented in 1817 (An Essay on the Shaking Palsy) by the British physician Dr. James Parkinson; the associated biochemical changes in the brain of patients were identified in the 1960s. Some genes were identified only recently; others remain unknown.

Related diseases

Parkinson-Plus diseases

There are other disorders that are called Parkinson-Plus diseases. These include:

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• Multiple System Atrophy (MSA)
• Shy-Drager Syndrome (SDS)
• Striatonigral degeneration (SND)
• Olivopontocerebellar Atrophy (OPCA)
• Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP)
• Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD)

Some people include Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) as one of the 'Parkinson-Plus' syndromes.

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Patients often begin with typical Parkinson's disease symptoms and these Parkinson-Plus diseases can only be diagnosed when other symptoms become apparent after some years. These Parkinson-Plus diseases usually progress more quickly than the typical main illness, and the usual anti-Parkinson's medications do not work as well at controlling symptoms.

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Secondary parkinsonism

Secondary parkinsonism (or briefly parkinsonism) is a term used for a symptom constellation that is similar to that of Parkinson's disease but is caused by other disorders or medications. Major reasons for secondary parkinsonism are stroke, encephalitis, narcotics, toxins and carbon monoxide poisoning, and normal pressure hydrocephalus.

Related Topics:
Stroke - Encephalitis - Narcotic - Toxins - Carbon monoxide poisoning - Normal pressure hydrocephalus

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There are other idiopathic (of unknown cause) conditions as Parkinson's disease that may cause parkinsonism. In these conditions the problem is not the deficient production of dopamine but the inefficient binding of dopamine to its receptors located on globus pallidus.

Related Topics:
Idiopathic - Globus pallidus

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