Imagine simple actions like buttoning your shirt or holding a cup of coffee become a daunting task. This is the reality of more than one million people in the United States living with PD. But, is this struggle they’ll face forever? It’s the most frequently asked question on various online forums.
It is hard to live with Parkinson’s disease. That’s why people with this disease and their families want to know if Parkinson’s ever goes away? There are a lot of myths, but the reality is that the disease is chronic and progressive. Parkinson’s disease will not go away permanently.
In this article, We’ll explain why Parkinson’s is not completely curable and how to deal with it to live a better life.
Challenges in Treating Parkinson’s Disease
Why is Parkinson’s disease not curable? PD is not curable like some other diseases e.g. Alzheimers or multiple sclerosis. Several researches proved that you can not reverse Parkinson’s condition due to several reasons, such as
Unknown exact cause
PD is not curable because the exact cause is still unknown. Old research stated that one major cause of Parkinson’s disease is the degeneration of dopamine production, but many environmental factors are involved. So, it is hard to find a permanent treatment for PD without knowing its causes.
Irreversible nerve damage
Neuron damage is irreversible; once neurons die, they can not regenerate. In many Parkinson’s disease cases , up to 70% neurons get damaged which is not thoroughly recoverable. So it is hard to get rid of PD.
Blood-brain barrier
Parkinson’s permanent treatment is not possible because of the blood-brain barrier. In Parkinson’s disease, this barrier blocks the absorption of many therapeutic drugs. That’s why Parkinson’s never goes away completely. Although medicines can help slow down the symptoms and improve quality of life.
Current Treatment Options for Parkinson’s Disease
Various clinics like Neurology One are practicing few treatments on parkinson’s disease patient which help them to manage it such as
1: Medication
Currently, several drugs are used to manage different physical and mental health issues related to PD, such as
- Levodopa
Levopods are the most used drugs for Parkinson’s patients. It is helpful because it replenishes dopamine. According to a recent report, about 20 percent of Parkinson’s patients showed improvement with Levodopa.
- Dopamine
A dopamine agonist is also given to people suffering from Parkinson’s disease. It helps in managing the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.
- Anti-allergic
Anticholinergic drugs can be used to lower the severity of Parkinson’s symptoms. This drug is helpful because it blocks the parasympathetic nervous system.
2: Deep brain stimulation
Deep brain stimulation therapy is an old therapy for treating Parkinson’s disease. It is a surgical process through which doctors induce a device that passes a mild current to a damaged part of your brain. It fixes the intentional scarring damage of brain parts which was affected during Parkinson’s disease.
This treatment option is applied when levodopa stops working on Parkinson’s patients with tumors.
3: Duopa therapy
Duopa therapy is effective for PD. In this advanced treatment, doctors infuse gel directly into the intestine of a Parkinson’s patient. They use a surgical tube from one side that is connected to an external pump that contains gel and the other end in the intestine.
4: Focused Ultrasound
One of the advanced treatment options Parkinson’s patients are using is focused ultrasound. This treatment is basically a neurosurgical technology that helps to manage symptoms.
In this treatment, experts use focused beams of ultrasound energy to target and heat specific circuits of the brain. Firstly, they send low energy to disrupt abnormal brain activity. After the removal of tumors, they increase the temperature to ablate the target.
Ongoing Research
There is no permanent cure for Parkinson’s disease, but scientists are working to better understand the condition and its related aspects.
Genes and biomarkers
Nowadays, only symptomatic treatment of Parkinson’s is available. Researchers are trying to introduce some disease-modifying drugs. Therefore, the main goal is to identify biomarkers that can lead to Parkinson’s progression.
Researchers have created an “accelerating medicines partnership knowledge portal” on which you can share genetic research progress data. This portal contains the genetic data of more than 4000 Parkinson’s patients.
The purpose of identifying biomarkers is to diagnose Parkinson’s early. Identification of biomarkers and genes means early diagnosis of Parkinson’s. This will lead to the formulation of more targeted medications. Mutations in both dominant and recessive genes are linked with the inheritance of PD. Moreover, Parkinson’s can also be due to environmental factors.
Research in 2019 found that around 27% of people with Parkinson’s have it because of genetic mutations in one of the three genes:
Glucocerebrosidase GBA
Parkin
Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2
Some other genes are responsible for Parkinson’s, like SNCA and PINK1. Nowadays, genome testing is available, but this is not entirely reliable.
Aiming for Timely Diagnosis
Do you know the early diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease can make your quality of life better? According to 2016 research, approximately 6.1 million people are suffering from Parkinson’s worldwide. This ratio has almost doubled since 1990, which was 2.5 million.. However, this can also be due to increased awareness of the disease as more people contact to doctor. Maybe in 1990, people were not so aware of Parkinson’s, so it was ignored back then.
Non-medicated Ways to Improve Quality of Life with Parkinson’s
Parkinson’s disease can look different for everyone. There are more than 40 symptoms. Because of this, there’s no one-size-fits-all cure. Instead, each person may need a combination of treatments and therapies that work best for them.
People suffering from Parkinson’s disease can enhance their quality of life with a few non-medicated strategies, such as
Take vitamins supplements
Adding Vitamins to your daily diet helps manage Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s patients also experience vitamin deficiency that causes nerve-related issues. So add vitamins like vitamins A, B, C, D, E, and K to your diet. According to a recent report, the use of essential vitamins with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and free radical scavenging properties acts as a neuroprotective therapeutic agent and slows down nerve damage.
Physical therapies
Physical therapies like acupuncture, body massage, yoga, aerobic exercises, balance work, strength training, stretching, and flexibility are very effective for people with PD because they improve blood flow, motor function, and body rigidity.
Music therapies
Music therapy helps people with Parkinson’s disease. A research report showed that soft music improves motor functioning in people with PD.
The Future of Parkinson’s Disease
Even though there’s no cure for Parkinson’s disease right now, the future looks hopeful. Scientists and doctors are working hard to find better treatments and maybe even a cure. One area they’re focusing on is stem cell research. Stem cells are special types of cells that can grow into different kinds of cells in the body. Scientists are looking at whether stem cells could be used to grow new brain cells, which could help fix the damage caused by Parkinson’s.
Conclusion
Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder. There is no permanent cure for it; you can just manage its symptoms. If you have Parkinson’s disease, get vitamin-rich foods, and stay physically active. There are few treatment options but be sure to consult your neurologist at Neurology One before choosing a treatment option.
