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Parkinson 's Disease And The Disease

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Parkinson’s disease is a chronic disorder of the nervous system with a gradual onset that primarily affects the body’s motor system. The symptoms of the disease are mainly caused by the death of dopamine-producing cells in the midbrain. Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter that, among other things, is responsible for playing a role in how the brain controls bodily movements. Therefore, the cardinal symptoms of the disease are movement related, including tremor and rigid, jerky movements. Parkinson’s is a progressive disease, meaning it gets worse over time, until it eventually leads to complete disability. Parkinson’s is a fairly common disease, and several well-known people, such as actor Michael J. Fox and boxer Muhammad Ali have …show more content…

Parkinson’s disease produces both motor symptoms and nonmotor symptoms. There are four cardinal motor symptoms of Parkinson’s: tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia (slow movements), and postural instability. Tremor is the most obvious symptom of Parkinson’s, as well as the most common. The tremor is uncontrollable and is most noticeable when the limb is at rest; when the limb is in use, the tremor disappears. Often times, the tremor only affects the hand or foot on one side of the body, but it can eventually become bilateral. Rigidity is characterized as stiffness and resistance to movement in the limbs. The arms, legs, face, and back are areas commonly affected. Early on, rigidity can cause joint pain, often in the shoulder. Bradykinesia is one of the most common symptoms of Parkinson’s. It is described as slowness and difficulty in initiating and making movements, especially repetitive movements and fine motor skills, such as writing. Bradykinesia greatly affects the ability of the Parkinson’s sufferer to perform common activities of daily life, like getting dressed. According to Nolden (2015), postural instability is the imbalance and loss of righting reflexes. This is usually a symptom that shows up in the late stages of Parkinson’s. Postural instability is linked with high rates of hip fractures in people with Parkinson’s disease, due to increased falls. Aside from the four cardinal motor symptoms, there are secondary motor symptoms that go

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