News

To expand access to quality care, the Parkinson’s Foundation is expanding to 60 the Centers of Excellence within its Global Care Network for Parkinson’s disease, and adding a new level of recognized excellence, called Comprehensive Care Centers. A total of 15 medical centers found to be providing “outstanding” and specialized clinical care and resources…

People with the most common form of arthritis, osteoarthritis, may be at increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, according to a study from the U.K. This result is in line with an earlier study from Taiwan. Based on these findings, “measures aiming at the prevention of Parkinson’s disease should be…

Longer hospital stays and poorer overall health were evident among Parkinson’s patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) in Brazil, but their likelihood of dying in an ICU was comparable to those of other patients, an 18-year analysis of hospital records found. Sepsis and trauma were among the leading causes of…

People with advanced Parkinson’s disease and freezing of gait (FOG) have higher levels of beta-amyloid — a protein that forms toxic clumps in the brains of those with Alzheimer’s disease — in their cerebrospinal fluid relative to patients without FOG, a small study reported. The presence of FOG was also associated with…

Because people with Parkinson’s disease tend to take shorter steps and move more slowly, they get less of a “pendulum-like” effect helping their movements, which makes their gait less efficient and ultimately uses more energy, a small study suggests. Its findings also indicate that Nordic walking — walking with…

The cerebrospinal fluid, which surrounds the brain and spinal cord, of people with moderately severe Parkinson’s disease shows evidence that damage to blood vessels meant to protect the brain may be a key driver of disease progression, a study based on findings in a Phase 2 trial reported. This…

Greater head motions due to Parkinson’s-related tremors were found to be associated with worse disease severity, a small study in patients reported. As an added diagnostic test in the clinic, measuring the degree of tremors affecting the head may also help in recognizing Parkinson’s early in people, its researchers…

Supernus Pharmaceuticals’ portfolio of Parkinson’s disease therapies now includes Gocovri (amantadine) and Osmolex ER (amantadine hydrochloride), with the company’s acquisition of Adamas Pharmaceuticals now complete. “Adamas fits squarely within our corporate development strategy, adding a late-stage commercial product with significant revenue,” Jack Khattar, president and CEO of Supernus…

Aiming to improve the clinical outcomes of people with Parkinson’s disease, pharmaceutical company UCB is partnering with key U.K. and U.S. nonprofits to establish the Patient Engagement Council for Parkinson’s Research. UCB is teaming up with the Parkinson’s Foundation in the U.S. and Parkinson’s UK in launching…

People with early- or late-onset Parkinson’s disease tend to have different characteristic changes in their speech, according to a new study. The study, “Distinct patterns of speech disorder in early-onset and late-onset de-novo Parkinson’s disease,” was published recently in npj Parkinson’s Disease. As many as nine in…