Parkinson’s Disease
September 3rd, 2011 | 
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What is Parkinson’s Disease?
Based on 6 cases examined in London in 1817, James Parkinson described the clinical features of a disease which he called paralysis agitans. Charcot, a famous French neurologist, suggested a new name for this disorder, the Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Since then, the original description, characterized by tremor and impaired posture and clinical course remains unchanged, but currently include cogwheel rigidity and bradykinesia (slowing of movement). In his day, Parkinson confused these last two symptoms as manifestations of paralysis.
Parkinson’s disease occurs as a result of a progressive loss of dopamine-producing cells in a part of the brain called the substantia nigra and has an important role in controlling the movement. The lack of such substance causes the death of the cells, leading to a progressive disorder of movement and balance, you just seriously affecting the activities of everyday life.Who gets Parkinson’s disease?
PD affects 1 to 2 people per 100,000 of the entire population. The main risk factor for this disease is age. Very few patients develop Parkinson’s disease before age 20, still very rare in children under 40 years, with only 5% incidence in Europe. The risk increases with age so that, for 80 years, 2 people in 100 have some of the signs of the disease. The sex incidence is approximately equal, and the prevalence (total cumulative cases in the population) of PE is similar throughout the world and in all races.
Some authors suggest a lower incidence in the population of China and Africa and higher in the ethnic Indian, African and Caribbean, but, being an insidious disease course is difficult to obtain accurate data. Moreover, in the early stages of the disease may be mistaken as certain neuropsychiatric disorders and joint problems. There are also genetic factors, but can say that the EP is hereditary only in a minority of patients. Such people often develop the disease before age 50 years and has previously and other sick family members, usually.
Other risk factors have been suggested are also the following:
- Exposure to pesticides and herbicides.
- Rural settings.
- Previous head injury.
- Changes in the sense of smell.
- Obsessive personality.
- Severe emotional trauma.
- Stress.
However, evidence supporting the association of these factors with PD is too low to take them into account.
credit to: Dr. Jimmy Alfonso Schieman Delgado, Dr. G. Hotton, Dr. K. Ray Chaudhuri
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