Swallowing Characteristics and Water Swallow Capacity in Patients with Parkinsonism.

Prevalence and characteristics of dysphagia (including aspiration) in patients with parkinsonism is variable, depending on type of assessment, diagnosis, disease stage and duration. The aim of this study was to further evaluate dysphagia characteristics in patients with different types of parkinsonism with both instrumental (Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing, FEES) and non-instrumental (Timed Water Swallow Test, TWST) assessments. Swallowing characteristics in 74 patients with parkinsonism were prospectively assessed using FEES and TWST.

Gender differences in diagnostic tools, medication, time to medication, and nonmotor symptoms in Parkinsonian patients.

Background: Swedish National Quality Registers (NQRs) play an important role in collecting large amounts of diagnosis-specific data, symptoms, and treatments. The subset of data, Parkinson's Registry, has been in use for more than 20 years and represents all counties and hospitals in Sweden where neurological care is provided.

Objective: To study the differences between genders regarding diagnostic tools, pharmacological interventions, and self-reported symptoms in patients with symptoms originating from basal ganglia disease, either idiopathic or secondary Parkinsonism (PD).

Mobile Geriatric Teams - A Cost-Effective Way Of Improving Patient Safety And Reducing Traditional Healthcare Utilization Among The Frail Elderly? A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Demographic changes combined with costly technological progress put a financial strain on the healthcare sector in the industrialized world. Hence, there is a constant need to develop new cost-effective treatment procedures in order to optimize the use of available resources. As a response, the concept of a Mobile Geriatric Team (MGT) has emerged not only nationally but also internationally during the last decade; however, scientific evaluation of this initiative has been very scarce.

Dyskinesia and FAB score predict future falling in Parkinson's disease.

A growing body of research highlights the importance of cognition for prediction of falls in Parkinson's disease (PD). However, a previously proposed prediction model for future near falls and falls in PD, which includes history of near falls, tandem gait, and retropulsion, was developed without considering cognitive impairment. Therefore, by using a sample of 64 individuals with relatively mild PD and not excluding those with impaired cognition we aimed to externally validate the previously proposed model as well as to explore the value of additional predictors that also consider cognitive impairment.

Distribution of non-motor symptoms in idiopathic Parkinson's disease and secondary Parkinsonism.

Background: Non-motor symptoms (NMS) are frequent in patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (IPD). Clinical expressions, postulated pathophysiological mechanisms, and responsiveness to antiparkinson medication represent differences between IPD and secondary Parkinsonism (SP).

Objective: To evaluate NMS expressions in IPD, SP, and a matched control group.

Evolution of Orofacial Symptoms and Disease Progression in Idiopathic Parkinson's Disease: Longitudinal Data from the Jönköping Parkinson Registry.

Background: Orofacial symptoms are common in Parkinson's disease (PD) both as initial manifestations and late markers of disease complications. We aimed to investigate the evolution of orofacial manifestations and their prognostic value throughout PD progression.

Methods: Data was obtained from "Jönköping Parkinson Registry" database on routine care visits of 314 people with idiopathic PD in southern Sweden.

Pain management in patients with Parkinson's disease: challenges and solutions.

This review focuses on the diagnosis and management of Parkinson-related pain which is one of the more frequently reported nonmotor symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD), which is the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer's disease. Pain is ranked high by patients as a troublesome symptom in all stages of the disease. In early-stage PD, pain is rated as the most bothersome symptom.

Short- and long-term effects of tactile massage on salivary cortisol concentrations in Parkinson's disease: a randomised controlled pilot study.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disorder with limited knowledge about the normal function and effects of non-pharmacological therapies on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The aim of the study was to analyse the basal diurnal and total secretion of salivary cortisol in short- and long-term aspects of tactile massage (TM).

Design: Prospective, Controlled and Randomised Multicentre Trial.

Found in transcription: accurate Parkinson's disease classification in peripheral blood.

Background: A blood-based test for the early detection of Parkinson's disease (PD) would be an important diagnostic tool and useful for patient selection when developing novel drugs or treatments for the disease.

Objective: Here, we aimed to identify potential biomarkers associated with PD.

Methods: We applied gene expression profiling to the study of peripheral blood from 75 healthy control subjects and 79 PD patients at different stages of the disease.

National surveys: a way to manage treatment strategies in Parkinson's disease? Pharmaceutical prescribing patterns and patient experiences of symptom control and their impact on disease.

Background: The purpose of this study was to draw conclusions from patient-reported experiences in two national surveys from Scandinavia with the intention of comparing treatment strategies and increasing our knowledge of factors that affect the experiences of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: A total of 2000 individuals in Sweden and 1300 in Norway were invited to complete postal surveys covering PD-related issues. Patient experiences of diagnostic procedures, symptom control, and follow-up in PD and the effects on symptom-related quality of life were collected.

Parkinson's disease patients' subjective descriptions of characteristics of chronic pain, sleeping patterns and health-related quality of life.

Objective: Nonmotor symptoms are common in Parkinson's disease (PD). Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is negatively affected by different factors, of which pain and sleep disturbances are important contributors. This study was performed to evaluate and describe subjective experiences of pain, sleeping patterns, and HRQoL in a cohort of PD patients with chronic pain.

Direct switch from levodopa/benserazide or levodopa/carbidopa to levodopa/carbidopa/entacapone in Parkinson's disease patients with wearing-off: efficacy, safety and feasibility--an open-label, 6-week study.

The study objective was to assess the efficacy, safety and feasibility of switching from levodopa/benserazide (LB) or levodopa/carbidopa (LC) to levodopa/carbidopa/entacapone (LCE) in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients with wearing-off. This was a multicenter, open-label, 6-week study; the primary outcome was success rate based on the patient-assessed Clinical Global Impression of Change (P-CGI-C). Secondary outcomes included investigator-assessed CGI-C (I-CGI-C), change from baseline in Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), motor/non-motor wearing-off symptoms and quality of life-visual analog scale (QoL-VAS).