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Parkinson disease incurable
but manageable: Dr Nadir
Karachi—”There is no cure for Parkinson’s disease, however,
medication and rehabilitation can play a major role in managing
symptoms and disability associated with it,” said Dr.Nadir Ali Syed,
Head of Neurology Section at Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH)
here on Thursday.
In his presentation at a session organized as part of World
Parkinson’s Day, the Consultant Neurologist said Parkinson’s disease
was a progressive disorder and its rate of progression varied from
person to person.
Most symptoms have to do with motor skills like; a person begins to
experience a slowness in voluntary movement such as standing up,
walking and sitting down; tremors, fine involuntary movements of the
hands, legs, jaw and face; stiffness of the arms, legs and trunk;
and poor balance, he elaborated.
Dr. Nadir Ali said a characteristic walk, “Parkinson’s Gait” was
commonly found in people suffering from this disorder.
Mentioning that though the cause of the disease is still unknown,
however, genetics and environmental factors are thought to play a
role.
Dr Syed said that while the disease primarily affects individuals
above age 60, recently there had been registered to be more cases in
younger individuals as well.
“There are no laboratory tests to definitively diagnose Parkinson’s
disease and a thorough neurological examination is often required to
confirm the diagnosis,” he said. Haroon Basheer, Chairman, Pakistan
Parkinson’s Society on the occasion presented a non-medical view of
the disease.—APP
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