Parkinson’s disease belongs to those sneaky conditions, which may be in many cases mistaken for other common disorders, especially on early stages. For example, stiffness in the joints may be attributed to arthritis and slowing of the movements (bradykinesia) is thought to be due to the natural aging process. A patient may live in blissful ignorance of the disease for about a year before seeking medical help and suspecting the development of this serious degenerative brain illness, which impairs sufferer’s motor skills, speech, and other body functions.
However, even having been diagnosed with the disease, one may deny the illness, irrespective of the presence of the four most common symptoms: tremors, rigidity, postural instability, and bradykinesia. It is, definitely, extremely difficult to get used to the living with the chronic incurable condition; however, acknowledging the disease is crucial for the successful control of the initial symptoms and postponing illness progression.
At the same time, psychological changes may represent the symptoms of the disease as well, since patients with Parkinson’s are often depressed, moody, and angry. In this respect psychological support of the family members, friends, and relatives is very important for a sufferer.
Although the times when human brain was treated as the absolute mystery, which could not be the subject of scientific research, have gone for good, the causes of the processes taking place there still remain unclosed. It is true for the Parkinson’s that scholars do not yet know what initiates disease development. They believe rather a combination of factors (genetic, environmental, and age-related) is the button, which starts the process.
Technically, the illness is traced to the lack of the dopamine neurotransmitter in the brain due to the death of brain specific neurons called dopaminergic (dopamine-producing) cells found in substantia nigra. When about 80% of those cells are dead, brain neurons communication is disrupted and Parkinson’s signs become vivid.
Statistics say that about 1.5 million Americans are officially diagnosed with Parkinson’s today, and about 60,000 new cases emerge every year. Targeting men and women with slight prevalence in men, Parkinson’s affects mostly people over 60; however, about 15% of the sufferers are younger than 50. Some sources state that this condition is less likely to target African-American representatives.
Starting slowly and gradually, initially affecting only one side of the body, Parkinson’s disease symptoms get worse over time varying individually in every patient. The progression of the condition may take as long as 20 years or more, or it can develop and aggravate much more rapidly, within several years. Physicians cannot predict disease scenario in every case, but they do their best to slow down the process and help a sufferer control the symptoms till the new, more effective options are discovered.
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