Marisa Wexler, MS, senior science writer —

Cognitive changes in people with Parkinson’s disease pose a substantial challenge for their care partners, new research suggests. The findings were presented at the 2020 Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders (held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic) by researchers from the Parkinson’s Foundation, in…

Supernus Pharmaceuticals has submitted a new drug application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seeking approval of SPN-830, its apomorphine infusion pump, the company said. If approved, the pump will be used for the continuous treatment of on-off episodes in adults with Parkinson’s…

Sunovion‘s Kynmobi (apomorphine hydrochloride), a sublingual film treatment for “off” episodes in people with Parkinson’s disease, has a manageable safety profile and maintains efficacy over up to nearly a year of use, interim data from an ongoing Phase 3 trial show. Findings were presented at MDS…

Vercise Genus, a fourth-generation system for deep brain stimulation (DBS) made by Boston Scientific, has received CE marking and is now commercially available in Europe. A treatment approach for Parkinson’s disease, DBS involves surgically implanting a neurostimulator to deliver electrical impulses to targeted regions of…

A speech therapy called the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD) can lessen difficulties in communication for people with Parkinson’s disease, a new study shows. The study, “The Impact of Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD) on Voice, Communication, and Participation: Findings from a Prospective, Longitudinal…

Computer-based analyses of the voice could be used for at-home monitoring of symptom severity in people with Parkinson’s disease, a small proof-of-concept study suggests. The study, “Prediction and Estimation of Parkinson’s Disease Severity Based on Voice Signal,” was published in the Journal of Voice.

A new behavioral test called the free-movement pattern Y-maze could be useful in assessing problems with working memory, both in animal models and people, a new study suggests. It may also help with research into neurological diseases like Parkinson’s. The study, “The Free-movement pattern Y-maze: A…

Remote coaching via telehealth could help people with Parkinson’s disease stay physically active, even when in-person events aren’t feasible, a study suggests. The study, “Promoting Physical Activity via Telehealth in People With Parkinson Disease: The Path Forward After the COVID-19 Pandemic?” was published in Physical Therapy.

Inhaled bacterial toxins can cause inflammation in a brain region associated with smell, and this inflammation may help in the initiation and propagation of Parkinson’s-related molecular changes in the brain, a study in mice suggests. The study, “IL‐1β/IL‐1R1 Signaling Induced by Intranasal Lipopolysaccharide Infusion Regulates Alpha‐Synuclein…

People who had a concussion are more likely to be diagnosed later in life with Parkinson’s disease and other neurologic disorders than those who never had this type of brain injury, a database study reports. The study, “Associations between concussion and risk of diagnosis of psychological…