Introduction:
Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system. It was described for the first time in 1817 by James Parkinson, a British physician who published an essay on what he called paralysis agitans, in this paper, sets out the main symptoms of the disease.
Researchers estimate that at least 500,000 people in the United States alone have Parkinson’s disease, although some estimates even higher. Insurance companies pay an enormous price for Parkinson’s disease, the total cost in the United States alone has been estimated to exceed $ 6 billion a year. The risk of developing Parkinson’s disease increases with age, so analysts expect that the financial impact on public health is worse with the aging population.
Parkinson’s disease belongs to the group of conditions that cause movement disorders. The four main symptoms are:
- Tremor, or trembling in hands, arms, legs, jaw, or head;
- Stiffness of the limbs and trunk;
- Bradykinesia, or slowness of movement;
- Instability of position weakened balance.
These symptoms begin slowly and get worsen with time. As the disease becomes more pronounced, patients may come to have difficulty in walking, talking, or completing other simple actions. Not all those who have one or more of these symptoms has Parkinson’s disease, as these symptoms sometimes occur in other diseases.
Parkinson’s disease is
- Chronic, ie persists for a long period of time,
- Progressive, ie worsens with time.
It is not contagious: Although some cases of Parkinson’s disease appear to be hereditary, and a few can be attributed to specific genetic mutations, most cases are sporadic and the disease appears to be transmitted in the family. Currently, many researchers believe that Parkinson’s disease resulting from a combination of genetic predisposition and exposure to one or more environmental factors contributing to the cause of the disease.