Parkinson’s disease
By: Arielle Kim
Approximately ten million people worldwide live with Parkinson’s disease, a chronic and progressive neurological disorder that affects the way you move. This disease can span from a couple years to one’s entire lifetime, worsening as time progresses. Parkinson’s is typically found from the age 60 and onward, but it can also affect people of younger ages.
Parkinson’s disease has many symptoms that affect the human body and mind, but the five most recognizable symptoms are: tremors, slow movements, stiff muscles, and problems with balance and walking. Other symptoms may include sleep disorders, cognitive impairment, digestive problems, and changes in mood, speech, and writing. Symptoms usually start on one side of the body, and after a couple of years increase in severity and migrate to the other side of the body. The symptoms of this disease create many challenges in one’s daily life. Simple tasks such as grooming, eating, bathing, and getting dressed become difficult. Typical activities become hazardous. Although there is no known cure for this disease yet, treatments can help in reducing its symptoms, making the initially impaired daily tasks easier to do. Neurology, medication, kinesiology, and surgery are four disciplines, or fields of study, that can work together to help address the challenges created by Parkinson’s disease. The discipline of neurology can address the challenges created by Parkinson’s disease because by providing us with information on the disease and its effects on the brain, treatments for the symptoms can be discovered. Neurology is the scientific study of the nervous system and the diseases that affect it. Through neurology, we know how Parkinson’s disease is caused; by the progressive damage and death of neurons (nerve cells) in the substantia nigra, a part of the brain. Some of these neurons produce dopamine, a chemical that sends signals to another part of your brain that controls movement, the corpus striatum. The formed connection allows you to move normally and smoothly. When you lose/damage these neurons, you start to lose the ability to control your body movements and emotions. Although scientists know that Parkinson's is caused by the damage of neurons, the mechanism of damage is not yet discovered. Neurology enables the disciplines of medication, kinesiology, and surgery to find treatments for the symptoms. Medication is one of the most common and effective ways of treating the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. …show more content…
This is how the discipline of medication can address the challenges created by the disease. There are many different types of medication, but because Parkinson’s disease is caused by a deficiency of dopamine in the brain, most medication for the symptoms are dopaminergic medications. Dopaminergic medications raise the amount of dopamine in your brain by either temporarily increasing the original level or by substituting for the dopamine. These medicines help motor symptoms such as problems with tremor, walking, and movement. Other symptoms can be treated by different medications. Antidepressants can treat symptoms such as mood disorders by boosting your mood and reducing depression. Cognition enhancing medications can treat cognitive issues such as confusion, slowed thinking, and memory difficulties. Although medication significantly reduces symptoms, one downside is that as a patient continues the use of medicine over time, the effects of it wear down. Symptoms remain controlled, but not to the extent they used to be. Physical therapy, or exercise, is another effective treatment for Parkinson’s disease’s symptoms, which is how the discipline of kinesiology (the study body movements) can address the challenges created by the disease. To a person with Parkinson’s, …show more content…
Kinesiology works together with the disciplines of medication and surgery because exercise is crucial to one with Parkinson’s- even if they take medication or undergo surgery. Medication and surgery are complementary to each other because surgery is an alternative treatment option for patients who aren’t responsive to medication, along with cases of advanced-stage Parkinson’s disease. Neurology works together with the other three disciplines because as our understanding of Parkinson’s disease and the brain expand, we can discover new exercises that are beneficial to Parkinson’s disease, create new and improved medications, and create better and safer surgical methods. In conclusion, the disciplines of medication, kinesiology, surgery, and neurology can work together to help improve the quality of life of people living with Parkinson’s
By: Arielle Kim
Approximately ten million people worldwide live with Parkinson’s disease, a chronic and progressive neurological disorder that affects the way you move. This disease can span from a couple years to one’s entire lifetime, worsening as time progresses. Parkinson’s is typically found from the age 60 and onward, but it can also affect people of younger ages.
Parkinson’s disease has many symptoms that affect the human body and mind, but the five most recognizable symptoms are: tremors, slow movements, stiff muscles, and problems with balance and walking. Other symptoms may include sleep disorders, cognitive impairment, digestive problems, and changes in mood, speech, and writing. Symptoms usually start on one side of the body, and after a couple of years increase in severity and migrate to the other side of the body. The symptoms of this disease create many challenges in one’s daily life. Simple tasks such as grooming, eating, bathing, and getting dressed become difficult. Typical activities become hazardous. Although there is no known cure for this disease yet, treatments can help in reducing its symptoms, making the initially impaired daily tasks easier to do. Neurology, medication, kinesiology, and surgery are four disciplines, or fields of study, that can work together to help address the challenges created by Parkinson’s disease. The discipline of neurology can address the challenges created by Parkinson’s disease because by providing us with information on the disease and its effects on the brain, treatments for the symptoms can be discovered. Neurology is the scientific study of the nervous system and the diseases that affect it. Through neurology, we know how Parkinson’s disease is caused; by the progressive damage and death of neurons (nerve cells) in the substantia nigra, a part of the brain. Some of these neurons produce dopamine, a chemical that sends signals to another part of your brain that controls movement, the corpus striatum. The formed connection allows you to move normally and smoothly. When you lose/damage these neurons, you start to lose the ability to control your body movements and emotions. Although scientists know that Parkinson's is caused by the damage of neurons, the mechanism of damage is not yet discovered. Neurology enables the disciplines of medication, kinesiology, and surgery to find treatments for the symptoms. Medication is one of the most common and effective ways of treating the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. …show more content…
This is how the discipline of medication can address the challenges created by the disease. There are many different types of medication, but because Parkinson’s disease is caused by a deficiency of dopamine in the brain, most medication for the symptoms are dopaminergic medications. Dopaminergic medications raise the amount of dopamine in your brain by either temporarily increasing the original level or by substituting for the dopamine. These medicines help motor symptoms such as problems with tremor, walking, and movement. Other symptoms can be treated by different medications. Antidepressants can treat symptoms such as mood disorders by boosting your mood and reducing depression. Cognition enhancing medications can treat cognitive issues such as confusion, slowed thinking, and memory difficulties. Although medication significantly reduces symptoms, one downside is that as a patient continues the use of medicine over time, the effects of it wear down. Symptoms remain controlled, but not to the extent they used to be. Physical therapy, or exercise, is another effective treatment for Parkinson’s disease’s symptoms, which is how the discipline of kinesiology (the study body movements) can address the challenges created by the disease. To a person with Parkinson’s, …show more content…
Kinesiology works together with the disciplines of medication and surgery because exercise is crucial to one with Parkinson’s- even if they take medication or undergo surgery. Medication and surgery are complementary to each other because surgery is an alternative treatment option for patients who aren’t responsive to medication, along with cases of advanced-stage Parkinson’s disease. Neurology works together with the other three disciplines because as our understanding of Parkinson’s disease and the brain expand, we can discover new exercises that are beneficial to Parkinson’s disease, create new and improved medications, and create better and safer surgical methods. In conclusion, the disciplines of medication, kinesiology, surgery, and neurology can work together to help improve the quality of life of people living with Parkinson’s