Parkinson's Disease (cont.)
How Can People Cope with Parkinson's Disease?
While Parkinson's disease usually progresses slowly, eventually the most basic daily routines
may be affected — from socializing with friends and enjoying normal
relationships with family members to earning a living and taking care of a home.
These changes can be difficult to accept. Support groups can help people cope
with the disease emotionally. These groups can also provide valuable
information, advice, and experience to help people with Parkinson's disease, their families, and
their caregivers deal with a wide range of issues, including locating doctors
familiar with the disease and coping with physical limitations. A list of
national organizations that can help patients locate support groups in their
communities appears at the end of this brochure. Individual or family counseling
also may help people find ways to cope with Parkinson's disease.
People with Parkinson's disease also can benefit from being proactive and finding out as much
as possible about the disease in order to alleviate fear of the unknown and to
take a positive role in maintaining their health. Many people with Parkinson's
disease continue
to work either full- or part-time, although eventually they may need to adjust
their schedule and working environment to cope with the disease.
Can Scientists Predict or Prevent Parkinson's Disease?
In most cases, there is no way to predict or prevent sporadic Parkinson's
disease. However,
researchers are looking for a biomarker — a biochemical abnormality that all
patients with Parkinson's disease might share — that could be picked up by screening techniques
or by a simple chemical test given to people who do not have any parkinsonian
symptoms. This could help doctors identify people at risk of the disease. It
also might allow them to find treatments that will stop the disease process in
the early stages.
Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning may lead to important advances in
our knowledge about Parkinson's disease. PET scans of the brain produce pictures of chemical
changes as they occur. Using PET, research scientists can study the brain's
dopamine receptors (the sites on nerve cells that bind with dopamine) to
determine if the loss of dopamine activity follows or precedes degeneration of
the neurons that make this chemical. This information could help scientists
better understand the disease process and may potentially lead to improved
treatments.
In rare cases, where people have a clearly inherited form of Parkinson's
disease, researchers
can test for known gene mutations as a way of determining an individual's risk
of the disease. However, this genetic testing can have far-reaching implications
and people should carefully consider whether they want to know the results of
such tests. Genetic testing is currently available only as a part of research
studies.
Next: What Research is Being Done on Parkinson's Disease? »
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