Parkinson’s disease is a neurological disorder which affects the motor nervous system and alters coordination and movement.
While the warning signs vary from person to person, the three symptoms used for diagnostic purposes are: Tremor, rigidity or stiffness of the muscles and Bradykinesia (slowness of movement)
Parkinson’s begins to occur when about 70% of a person’s dopamine producing cells cease to function normally. Symptoms develop slowly and gradually progress over the years, but are greatly helped by drug treatment.
At present there is no known cause and therefore the illness is termed; “idiopathic”. It is not considered to be genetic, though 2-5% of cases have a familial incidence in Australia.
While Parkinson’s is often perceived as an old persons’ disease, 20 per cent of people are diagnosed before the age of 65 years of age.
At present Parkinson’s is incurable; however drug therapy can alleviate symptoms.
If you want to find out more about living with the condition, or its signs and symptoms, the following links contain information that may help
