Senior Citizens Resources
Senior Health Consultant Article
This is a selection made from among articles on Senior Health Consultant. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for future reading, click here.
Coping With Parkinson's Disease
from:Seniors have to be prepared for any conditions that may come their way, as some inevitably will, as they age. Unfortunately, there are some diseases and conditions that one just cannot prepare for. Parkinson's Disease is one such condition.
Parkinson's Disease occurs predominantly in the elderly but can be present in a small number of younger people. Parkinson's Disease is not primarily caused by mental degeneration, as is the common perception, although it is related to the brain. However, regardless of that fact, it can still be extremely frustrating for both the sufferer and his or her family because the condition is progressively degenerative and the former will know exactly what is happening for quite a while before the black hole of oblivion takes over.
Parkinson's Disease is caused by the nerve cells in the body slowly breaking down so that they are unable to relay the messages that the body is sending to the brain. The main function of the nerve cells is to connect the brain and the body to let the former know what the latter is doing and vice versa. Unfortunately, as the nerve cells slowly become more damaged, they are unable to function correctly and thus wires get crossed. It is at that point that the sufferer begins to lose all control of what his or her body is actually doing.
The early symptoms are a slight shaking of the hands, arms, legs and jaw, also known as tremors. This is because the nerves begin to affect the muscles and affect movement. After a while, these symptoms will become noticeable to everyone around you and will then begin to progressively worsen as time goes on.
Parkinson's usually affects one side of the body more than the other and can also affect all forms of communications. It may be a chore to write because the tremors prevent accurate lettering and, after a while, the sufferer's speech will also be affected. The full-blown shakes do not usually begin until a few years after the initial tremors start, although it can be as little as a few months for some sufferers. There is no telling how long this progression will take, but once it starts it is only a matter of time.
Doctors do not, as yet, know what causes Parkinson's Disease, despite extensive research into it. There is not even an official test to diagnose the patient. Most diagnoses are made on medical histories and tests to rule out other ailments and illnesses. Unfortunately, this means that there is no cure available to sufferers. Once you have it, you have got it for life. This can take some getting used to, but many sufferers simply get on with their lives until they reach the point where this is no longer possible.
The disease often causes depression, as well as making everyday tasks, such as getting dressed, near on impossible. Buttons and laces could be the hardest puzzle in the world to a Parkinson's sufferer and this makes it extremely frustrating.
There are drugs that will help alleviate symptoms for Parkinson's Disease sufferers in the short term, although they have no beneficial effects in the long term. Certain medications can stop the tremors for short periods of time and thus allow sufferers to get on with their lives as normal. These drugs include carbidopa-levodopa, bromocriptine, selegiline, pramipexole, ropinirole, tolcapone and pergolide. Of course, they all have different brand names but are designed to do the same job. Some medications will suit an individual, but others will make symptoms worse for a time. Nobody can tell which ones will work and so doctors usually have to experiment to get it right.
Parkinson's Disease is a horrible illness for the sufferer and the people close to him or her. There is very little that can be done, but being diagnosed early can alert patients to the amount of time they have to make the most of life before it takes over their bodies. Research is still ongoing but until there is a cure, life just has to go on as normal.
Senior Health Care Online News
Pricey imaging pushes up health costs - Boston Globe
 Boston Globe | Pricey imaging pushes up health costs Boston Globe Governor Deval Patrick's administration hired the researchers to investigate rising health care costs. But hospital executives said the state's consultants ... |
Senior public servants' pay to be frozen - BBC News
 Telegraph.co.uk | Senior public servants' pay to be frozen BBC News Health Secretary Andy Burnham said NHS managers and hospital consultants would see pay frozen, as would the majority of GPs and dentists. ... Pay is frozen for 120000 senior staff in public sector Civil service pay freeze is insult to hardworking staff, says union Brown ''insults public servants'' with pay freeze |
CDC Ignores Cold Turkey Quitters - WhyQuit (press release)
CDC Ignores Cold Turkey Quitters WhyQuit (press release) As senior scientist at the CDC's Office on Smoking and Health (OSH) since 1999, America's lead agency in the war against tobacco induced disease and death, ... |
Ex-Obama adviser: Democrats may get 'slaughtered' in fall - CNN
 CNN | Ex-Obama adviser: Democrats may get 'slaughtered' in fall CNN Hildebrand, a highly regarded strategist in Democratic circles who helped deliver the crucial state of Iowa for Obama, is an outside consultant pushing ... |
Hospital dismisses letter claims - The Press Association
 Irish Times | Hospital dismisses letter claims The Press Association Senior management at Tallaght Hospital have dismissed claims that 30000 GP referral letters were left unopened. But the hospital, already facing a storm of ... Hospitals fail to ensure consultants see all X-rays Managers ignored warnings over X-rays Harney 'told about crisis two years ago' |
Your comments: NJ Gov. Chris Christie plans privatization of as many as 2000 ... - The Star-Ledger - NJ.com
 The Star-Ledger - NJ.com | Your comments: NJ Gov. Chris Christie plans privatization of as many as 2000 ... The Star-Ledger - NJ.com If that doesn't work out,, I'll come back, this time as a consultant and ruthlessly charge the state for these services at three times the cost. ... |