5 Myths and facts about Parkinsons disease

Parkinson’s disease is a disorder of the central nervous system that affects movement, often including tremors. Nerve cell damage in the brain causes dopamine levels to drop, leading to the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. The common symptoms of this disease are tremors in the hands, slow movement, stiffness, and loss of balance. Senior people are mostly affected by this disease. There is currently no test for Parkinson’s disease. So, it is necessary to constantly monitor the health of our beloved parents and other senior members of our family and to remain in touch with doctors regularly.

 In this blog I am going to discuss some myths and facts related to Parkinson’s disease to create awareness among the community:

Myth 1: Parkinson’s is “only” a motor condition
Fact: Some common symptoms of Parkinson’s disease include shaking and tremors, rigid muscles, slow movement, and a frozen facial expression, but there is more to it. Nowadays, non-motor symptoms are getting more recognition from doctors and researchers. These symptoms include dementia in later stages, anxiety, and depression along with fatigue, sleep disorders. In some cases, a non-motor symptom tends to be more serious than a motor symptom.
 

Myth 2: Medications related to Parkinson’s cause symptoms

Fact: "Levodopa" is the main drug therapy for Parkinson’s disease given to patients with motor symptoms. That being said, people are under the wrong assumption that over time, it makes the disease progress faster and is toxic. This concept was however deflated decades ago with the assistance of a clinical trial where doctors found that patients exposed to levodopa were doing far better than the ones who were given a placebo. Although Levodopa is not the answer for a permanent cure to Parkinson’s but is not toxic.

Myth 3: Parkinson’s disease is deadly

Fact: Parkinson’s disease is not a direct killer, like stroke or heart attack. You may become more vulnerable to falls, which can be dangerous during the later stages of this disease. That is why it is crucial to perform regular exercises and carry continuous physical therapy sessions to avoid any injuries by accidents. Infection can crop up during later stages of this disease, if left untreated it might prove fatal. Hence it is very critical to consult and carry out regular checkups with doctors to reduce this risk.

Myth 4: Everyone experiences tremors with Parkinson’s

Fact: Connecting individuals with tremors to Parkinson’s disease is very easy because of its recognizable and prominent effects on its patients. But studies have shown that some patients affected by Parkinson’s never experienced tremor at any stages of the disease.

Myth 5: Parkinson’s research is stalled

Fact:  Researchers have found out many exciting breakthroughs regarding this disease and they hope to translate them into actual clinical results very soon. So what most people think that there is no progress going on with the research work of Parkinson’s disease is not true.

 Hope this blog would help to debunk the common myths that  surrounded Parkinson’s disease and enlighten people with the facts regarding the disease.