What is Parkinson's Disease |Shake It Up Australia FoundationShake It Up Australia Foundation

WHAT IS PARKINSON’S

Parkinson’s is a neurodegenerative disorder of unknown cause that affects an estimated 5 million individuals worldwide. While advancing age remains the greatest risk factor, one in 10 sufferers are diagnosed before they reach 40.

Whilst living with Parkinson’s will require modifications in some areas of your life, it is important for you to remain positive during the changes and maintain a healthy and active lifestyle. A variety of medications is available to effectively treat the symptoms and help you lead a full life.

PREVALENCE OF PARKINSON’S IN AUSTRALIA

30 people are diagnosed with Parkinson’s every day;

20% of people affected are of working age;

the average person lives for about 12 years from diagnosis (although it can be a lot longer);

Parkinson’s is commoner than prostate, bowel and many other cancers;

it costs people with Parkinson’s about $12,000 a year out of their own pockets;

every year nearly 50,000 years of healthy life are lost to the condition;

numbers have grown 17% in the last six years and costs by over 48%.”

SYMPTOMS OF PARKINSON’S

People are generally most familiar with the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, as they are the most evident signs of the disease from the outside. But there is also increasing recognition of the importance of other non-motor symptoms of the disease that can sometimes have a major impact on patients

MOTOR SYMPTOMS OF PARKINSON’S

People are generally most familiar with the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, as they are the most evident signs of the disease from the outside. These symptoms, which are called the “cardinal” symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, include:

Slowness of movement, or bradykinesia
Rigidity
Resting tremor
Postural instability, or balance problems, can result in the advanced stages of the disease
Other physical symptoms, such as gait problems and reduced facial expression, may also occur
These are due to the same disruption of movement that causes the better-known tremor and slowness

NON-MOTOR SYMPTOMS OF PARKINSON’S

There is also increasing recognition of the importance of other symptoms of Parkinson’s disease that are sometimes called “non-motor symptoms” or “dopamine-non-responsive.” While neither of these terms is ideal, these symptoms are common and can have a major impact on Parkinson’s patients. They include:

Cognitive impairment, ranging from mild memory difficulties to dementia
Mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety, also occur frequently
Sleep difficulties, such as REM Sleep Disorder
Loss of sense of smell, called hyposmia
Constipation, speech and swallowing problems
Unexplained pains, drooling and low blood pressure when standing may also result

Parkinson’s disease symptoms manifest differently in different patients. Many patients experience some symptoms and not others, and even the pace at which the disease worsens varies on an individual basis