Treatment
Levodopa or drugs which replace dopamine levels
This can be taken orally in both liquid and tablet form.
Levodopa is used to increase the levels of dopamine in the brain as dopamine itself is unable to cross the blood-brain barrier and...
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Dopamine agonists
A dopamine agonist is: 'A drug or chemical that has been synthesised to bind directly to and activate one or many dopamine receptors in the brain therefore mimicking the effects of dopamine, by...
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Monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors
These are used to prevent the breakdown of both endogenous dopamine and that produced after conversion from levodopa. Inhibiton of monoamine oxidase increases the availibility of dopamine...
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COMT Inhibitors (catechol O-methyl transferase inhibitors)
COMT is an enzyme which metabolises dopamine in the periphery. These are a class of drugs which inhibit COMT enzyme which usually breaks down dopamine. Often administered with...
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Anticholinergic drugs
These are classed to act through a similar mechanism as dopamine replacement drugs but they work on different sites of the brain. They work to block the action of acetylcholine, a...
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Amantadine
A drug found to be useful in the treatment of drug-induced dyskinesias. Again classed as a dopamine replacement drug, amantadine is an anti-influenza drug which works on different sites of the...
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Treatment of Non-motor symptoms
There are also recommended treatments for non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease. These are summarised along with the recommendation in the following table:
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Surgery
Ablation surgery:
The procedure to locate, target and then lesion or ablate the area of the brain which produces the abnormal impulses that result in tremors and other associated Parkinson's...
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Other non-drug treatment therapies
There are other therapies involved in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease which neither involve surgical procedures or drug treatment. Such therapies work to improve the social issues...
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Above movie showing the Parkinsonian gait before and after Levodopa treatment experienced by a Parkinson's patient. is courtesy of user 04Schalke04 of You Tube.