What is Parkinson's disease and what are its symptoms?
Sep 30, 2024
Source: Cainiu Health
Dr. Lv Zhiqin
Introduction
Parkinson's disease is a common neurodegenerative disorder in the elderly, associated with factors such as genetics, environment, and aging of the nervous system. Common symptoms of Parkinson's disease include resting tremor, muscle rigidity, bradykinesia, balance problems, and sleep disturbances. During treatment, it is important to maintain a balanced diet, reduce intake of high-protein foods at breakfast, consume more vegetables and fruits, and drink plenty of water.
Parkinson's disease is a common neurodegenerative disorder in the elderly, associated with factors such as genetics, environment, and aging of the nervous system. Generally, symptoms of Parkinson's disease include resting tremor, muscle rigidity, bradykinesia (slowness of movement), balance problems, sleep disturbances, and others. Patients are advised to seek timely medical evaluation and receive symptomatic treatment under a doctor's guidance. Specific analyses are as follows:
1. Resting Tremor: A decrease in dopamine levels in the basal ganglia region of the brain leads to abnormal neural signal transmission, typically causing resting tremors that often begin in the hands.
2. Muscle Rigidity: Dopamine deficiency disrupts the regulation of muscle tone, causing muscles to remain in a state of excessive contraction, restricting joint mobility and resulting in a sensation of muscle tightness.
3. Bradykinesia: Dysfunction in brain regions responsible for motor coordination may lead to slower walking speed, shorter stride length, and difficulty turning over at night.
4. Balance Problems: Impaired processing of body position and spatial awareness by the brain, combined with muscle rigidity and bradykinesia, results in abnormal posture and gait, such as forward bending or leaning, increasing the risk of falls while walking.
5. Sleep Disturbances: Degeneration and loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra of the midbrain, along with bradykinesia and muscle rigidity, may cause sleep disorders such as limb movements or loud vocalizations during nighttime sleep.
When Parkinson's disease symptoms appear, patients should follow medical advice to take medications such as levodopa tablets, amantadine hydrochloride tablets, and rasagiline mesylate tablets. During treatment, it is important to maintain a balanced diet, consume less high-protein food at breakfast, eat more vegetables and fruits, and drink plenty of water.
