Parkinson’s disease or PD is a disorder of the brain that is caused when neurons in the brain stop working or die (Browner & Pagan, 2014). The normal function of neurons, or your brain cells, is to make dopamine. This disease typically occurs in the elderly years, starting at fifty and above. This disease affects millions of people around the world, and estimated ten million, 60,000 just in North America. It is not prominent in any one culture or race; even celebrities like Michael J. Fox or Muhammad Ali have PD.
. Parkinson’s disease got its name from a man named James Parkinson. He was British physician who was the first to write a description of the disease in 1817 (ABC Health & Wellbeing, 2013). He published this work which he titled “An Essay on the Shaking Palsy”. He wrote a few other things, but his work on Parkinson’s is what he is most known for. James Parkinson described the disease as an inconvenience, as his patients could not control their movement, and movements would happen involuntarily (Parkinson, 1817)
To understand Parkinson’s disease, we have to understand more about dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter or chemical signal which passes signals all throughout your brain. These signals allow us to experience pain and pleasure, as well as control your body movement, and your emotions. People often associate dopamine with addictions because the pleasure we experience is caused by the release of dopamine (Brookshire, 2013).
When we eat our favorite foods, like a piece of chocolate cake, the neurotransmitters in your brain release dopamine which allows us to feel the pleasure of chocolate. However, like an addiction we can get cravings to feel that pleasure again. When we start having a craving for another slic...
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...ce dopamine. This stopped the mice from having Parkinson related symptoms (American Chemical Society, 2014). Now so far this technique has only been tested on rats, so it will probably take a lot more experimenting because it makes its way to human trials.
The cause as well as the cure for Parkinson’s disease is unknown. However, it is more likely to develop in men than in women. It is very important that if someone is experiencing possible symptoms of Parkinson’s they should talk to their doctor. It may also help if caregivers or family members keep a special eye on their loved one. Some may not even realize that their memory is worsening, or they have tremors. It is extremely important to have some sort of support system, whether in the form of family members or medical staff, when diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, especially down the line when symptoms worsen.
Parkinson’s disease is not a condition that is necessarily easy to be diagnosed. Therefore, the individual is advised to see a Parkinson’s specialist to receive the most accurate diagnosis and consider what the best course of treatment for the individual would be.
Many people, like myself, after watching an episode of “The Michael Jay Fox Show,” started to be come curious as to what exactly this disease is. You ask yourself; What is this disease? What causes it? Can it be passed down from generation to generation? Is there a treatment? What would your life be like suffering from this? Through my research on Parkinson’s disease, I am determined to answer these questions. I hope to have a better understanding on this disease, and how it affects the lives of patients that I might see in a hospital.
Parkinson’s Disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder in the community resulting in significant disability. This global problem has consumed the lives of many. “Approximately 60,000 Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson's disease each year, and this number does not reflect the thousands of cases that go undetected” (Statistics on Parkinson’s, 2014). Once this unbiased disease has begun to affect the patient it is a lifelong battle. Parkinson’s disease has a tremendous impact on the patient as they battle for their independence and plead for their acceptance into their own community setting. People living with Parkinson’s disease struggle with tremors, bradykinesia and rigidity. It takes a skilled nurse to be able to care for the patient suffering with Parkinson. With education, support and exercise the patient will be able to feel some sense of hope for their future. The purpose of this paper to is educate the community about Parkinson’s disease and the impact on the patient and on the nurse caring for the patient.
Parkinson's Disease is a mysterious disease that affects the central nervous system and can be very difficult to treat and live with. It is classified as a motor system disorder but is a progressive, chronic disease resulting in
With more than 200,000 US cases per year, Parkinson’s disease has become a major part
Parkinson disease (PD), also referred to as Parkinson’s disease and paralysis agitans, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that is the third most common neurologic disorder of older adults. It is a debilitating disease affecting motor ability and is characterized by four cardinal symptoms: tremor rigidity, bradykinesia or kinesis (slow movement/no movement), and postural instability. Most people have primary, or idiopathic, disease. A few patients have secondary parkinsonian symptoms from conditions such as brain tumors and certain anti-psychotic drugs.
Parkinson's is an idiopathic, multifactorial neurodegenerative disease that attacks neurotransmitters in the brain called dopamine. Dopamine is concentrated in a specific area of the brain called the substantia nigra. The neurotransmitter dopamine is a chemical that regulates muscle movement and emotion. Dopamine is responsible for relaying messages between the substantia nigra and other parts of the brain to control body movement. The death of these neurotransmitters affects the central nervous system. The most common symptoms are movement related, including shaking, rigidity, slowness of movement and difficulty with posture. Behavioral problems may arise as the disease progresses. Due to the loss of dopamine, Parkinson's patients will often experience depression and some compulsive behavior. In advanced stages of the disease dementia will sometimes occur. The implications of the disease on the anatomy and physiology of the respiratory and phonatory systems significantly control speech.
Nurse’s play a very important role in the delivery of care to an older person and in complex disease such as Parkinson’s disease, the care provided by a nurse is vital for both the patient and the family of the affected person. The aim of this essay is to understand briefly about Parkinson’s disease and associated issues and the role of the nurse in the management of the condition.
Parkinson disease is their affliction. Although Parkinsonism has been around almost as long as recorded history, there is yet to be found a cause or a cure. Medications tame the symptoms and prolong life, but are incapable of reversing the disease progression.. Diagnosis relies exclusively upon clinical signs and symptoms, because almost all laboratory and radiography tests are normal in the Parkinson patient. For this reason early diagnosis is very difficult.
Drugs seem to cause surges in dopamine neurotransmitters and other pleasure brain messengers. However, the brain quickly adapts and these circuits desensitize, which allows for withdrawal symptoms to occur (3). Drug addiction works on some of the same neurobiological mechanisms that aid in learning and memories (3). "This new view of dopamine as an aid to learning rather than a pleasure mediator may help explain why many addictive drugs, which unleash massive surges of the neurotransmitter in the brain, can drive continued use without producing pleasure-as when cocaine addicts continue to take hits long after the euphoric effects of the drug have worn off or when smokers smoke after cigarettes become distasteful." (4)
Dopamine sends signals to other nerve cells in the brain, which regulates movement, motivation, emotion, and feelings of pleasure.
Parkinson's Disease has caused problems for many people in this world and plagued the elderly all over the world.Parkinson's disease still puzzles doctors and the causes are unknown. It is known that it is a non-communicable disease and may even be hereditary. Parkinson's disease is thought to be caused by external factors. Most of the cases of this disease are caused by progressive deterioration of the nerve cells, which control muscle movement. Dopamine, one of the substances used in the brain to transmit impulses, is produced in the area of deterioration.
"Parkinsonism: Causes and Coping Strategies." Parkinsonism: What Causes It? N.p., n.d. Web. 11 May 2014.
Slaughter, Gwen. "Is Chocolate Physiologically or Psychologically Addictive?" Serendip. Bryn Mawr University, 2001. Web. 24 Oct. 2013.
Addictive drugs like nicotine and cocaine and heroin, all can rewire the brain to crave the satisfaction that these agents produce. The desire becomes so strong that it starts to take over the body and it no longer becomes for pleasure and it becomes a need for your body. Now likewise, some people argue that some foods have the same power and effects on people that drugs do, where some of these foods can alter the brain in a way that is resets the appetite and satisfaction threshold in a way that it’s out of reach, meaning a person can never have enough. The obesity levels these days semi-dangerous, so some doctors have conducted an experiment that tested the effects of some foods on the brain, where they took 12 obese men after they consumed two milkshakes, whit the same amount of calories, protein, fat and carbohydrates, and they were equally sweet. (Sifferlin 2013) On the other hand one milkshake had much higher glycemic index from the carbohydrates. After the a few hours the blood sugar levels went down leaving the men hungry again. But after they ate the region of the brain that is related to addictive drugs and behaviors was triggered. In this paper food addiction is discussed and shown that it is a real problem that further critical analysis and experiments should be conducted on such issue.