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Essay Parkinson's Disease

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Parkinson's Disease

In 1817, James Parkinson published his famous treatise: "An Essay on the Shaking Palsy," describing the symptoms which now collectively bear his name. Although many scientists before his time had described various aspects of motor dysfunction (ataxia, paralysis, tremor) Parkinson was the first to collect them into a common syndrome; one which he believed formed a distinctive condition. His sixty-six page essay contained five chapters describing symptoms, differential diagnoses, causality, possible treatments, and prospects for future study. What is most intriguing concerning Parkinson’s analysis (besides its consistent accuracy) is the fact that his clinical observations and inferences were made by watching the …show more content…

These simple movements are referred to as akathesia and can occur during inactivity as well as with motion. Muscular rigidity, on the other hand, reveals an increase in tonicity of both flexors and extensors, especially in the distal limbs. Resistance to movement is seen to a point. However, if sufficient force is used, the muscles give and movement occurs briefly over a short distance. Rigidity is then re-initiated after the movement has stopped. This form of stepwise motions is referred to as cogwheel rigidity; its severity is variable depending on localization of the lesion, extent of neural damage, and progression of the disease over time. It is culminated by an increased slowness with difficulty beginning and continuing most every kind of movement.

Negative symptoms are not indicative of abnormal movements or actions. Rather, they are classified as revealing an absence or inability to perform certain behaviors. Such disorders fall into particular categories based on the type of movement in which the patient is deficient. There are three such categories: disorders of posture, locomotion, and speech. Disorders of posture are divided into deficits of equilibrium and fixation. Disorders of fixation center on the inability of a patient to begin or to maintain a part of his/her body in its normal position. Usually what is seen is a drooping

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