Weight loss within the first years of a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis is linked to a faster decline in global cognitive function over time, a new study found. Conversely, early weight gain was associated with slower deterioration of attention and processing speed in these patients. The study results add to…
Scientists in the United Kingdom have developed a robotic device to aid the diagnosis and treatment of brain disorders, such as Parkinson’s. The device — a soft, flexible catheter and an artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled robotic arm — could help neurosurgeons see deep brain structures and deliver treatments without damaging…
Differing natural sleeping schedules, known as a person’s chronotype, do not associate with daytime sleepiness in people with Parkinson’s disease, a study reported. Rather, daytime sleepiness related most to the type of dopamine therapy that patients used. But no significant differences were evident between morning or evening chronotypes, or those…
Neuron23 and QIAGEN have joined forces to develop a companion test to predict the response of patients to Neuron23’s experimental treatment for Parkinson’s disease, called NEU-723. “QIAGEN’s blood-based test will help to identify patients with Parkinson’s disease who are likely to respond to Neuron23’s LRRK2 inhibitor,” Nancy Stagliano,…
People with Parkinson’s disease reported enjoying and benefiting physically and emotionally from a community cycling program — Pedaling for Parkinson’s (PFP) — viewing it favorably in a survey regardless of their age or disease symptoms and severity, a study of patients at five PFP sites reported. The aerobic program’s cost, access…
Scientists have compared three techniques – handwriting, cameras, and wearable sensors – and found sensors to be the most reliable in diagnosing Parkinson’s disease, although they are uncomfortable for patients in the later stages of the disease. “Not all people with Parkinson’s show each and every symptom of the…
Scientists in Germany have developed the first highly sensitive test to detect altered alpha-synuclein proteins in blood samples from patients with Parkinson’s disease. The test accurately distinguishes people with Parkinson’s from those without the disease and has the potential to detect the disease early, before symptoms start, according to…
Signs of frozen gait are most noticeable when people with Parkinson’s disease are turning or walking in a circle, and more noticeable when they are walking backward rather than forward, a small study reported. Three distinct characteristics of walking — step length, walking speed, and range of joint motion —…
People with Parkinson’s disease and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder — marked by acting out dreams, sometimes violently — showed no significant differences in their levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, an inflammatory protein, and orexin, a protective protein, relative to patients without this sleep disorder or people…
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