News

Levodopa, one of the main medicines used to treat Parkinson’s symptoms, can be converted into dopamine by gut bacteria, researchers report. The findings might explain why levodopa treatment is less effective in some patients. The study, “Gut bacterial tyrosine decarboxylases restrict levels of levodopa in the treatment…

Cancer patients appear to have a lower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, even when taking into account important risk factors and overall survival, a study has found. The study, “Cancers Preceding Parkinson’s Disease after Adjustment for Bias in a Danish Population-Based Case-Control Study,” was published in Neuroepidimiology.

Physical activity and participation in competitive sports, as well as coffee, caffeinated tea or moderate alcohol consumption before diagnosis, protect against worsening motor and cognitive function in Parkinson’s patients, according to a new population-based study. In contrast, smoking and heavy alcohol consumption — or never consuming alcohol — correlated…

Using a parameter called interleaving stimulation (ILS) in deep brain stimulation (DBS) eased dyskinesia — involuntary, jerky movements — in patients with Parkinson’s, according to a new study. In contrast, the benefits in people with tremor or dystonia — abnormal muscle tone — or in mitigating DBS-induced adverse side effects were not…

An inexpensive off-the-shelf hand-tracker can objectively and reliably measure Parkinson’s disease-related slowness of movement (bradykinesia) over time, both in a clinical setting or at a patient’s home, researchers report. The study, “Objective evaluation of bradykinesia in Parkinson’s disease using an inexpensive marker-less motion tracking system,” was published…

Onstryv (safinamide) has been approved for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease in Canada, where roughly 100,000 individuals live with the disorder. The announcement was made by Quebec-based Valeo Pharma and Italian pharmaceutical conglomerate Zambon, the commercialization partner of Newron Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development…

Researchers have found that mutations in a gene linked to hereditary forms of Parkinson’s disease — SLC30A10 — cause accumulation of toxic levels of manganese inside cells, which disturbs protein transport and alters nerve cell function, leading to parkinsonian symptoms. The study “SLC30A10 Mutation Involved in Parkinsonism Results in Manganese Accumulation within…

Subjective cognitive decline in Parkinson’s disease could predict the development of dementia. As such, a suitable cognitive screening test could help provide an accurate diagnosis and prognosis. The study with those findings, “Subjective cognitive decline and progression to dementia in Parkinson’s disease: a long-term follow-up study,” was…

A collaboration between Theracycle and Virginian Outpatient Therapy will replicate a forced exercise regimen on a motorized bicycle with evidence of easing Parkinson’s symptoms, including rigidity, loss of balance and tremor. In a 2009 study conducted by the Cleveland Clinic, an eight-week program of forced…

Subtyping Parkinson’s disease at diagnosis may predict disease course and survival, providing both doctors and patients with a more accurate prognosis, a study suggests. The study, “Prognosis and Neuropathologic Correlation of Clinical Subtypes of Parkinson Disease,” was published in JAMA Neurology. Parkinson’s disease is characterized…