Arthur Schoenstadt, MD, author of the eMedTV article “Parkinson's Disease Statistics,” explains that doctors diagnose about 50,000 people in the United States with Parkinson's disease every year; however, a more accurate statistic is not available due to people not seeking medical help, believing that their symptoms are part of aging. A motor system disorder, Parkinson's disease results from a significant drop in dopamine, a neurotransmitter. In the brain of a Parkinson's disease patient, the destruction of dopamine-producing neurons occur, leading to a decrease in dopamine. Without an adequate level of dopamine, patients have mobility problems.
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) points out that Parkinson's disease has four hallmark symptoms: tremors, bradykinesia, rigidity and postural instability. The tremors can affect the face, hands, jaw, arms and legs. With bradykinesia, patients have a slowed movement. Parkinson's disease patients may develop dementia as the disease progresses. MedlinePlus adds that Parkinson's disease commonly develops after the age of 50, though doctors are not sure why the dopamine-producing cells waste away in the brain.
A new study published in the journal Neurology notes that a type of sleep disorder called REM sleep behavior disorder may help predict the development of Parkinson's disease in patients. REM sleep behavior sleep disorder occurs during one of the stages of sleep, rapid eye movement sleep, or REM sleep. Patients with REM sleep behavior disorder act out their dreams in a violent way. For example, they may start punching and kicking or yelling in their sleep. This study found that REM sleep behavior disorder patients can develop Parkinson's disease up to 50 years later.
HealthDay News reports that through using records, the authors of the study found that 27 patients with this sleep disorder developed neurodegenerative diseases: 13 patients developed Parkinson's disease, 13 patients developed dementia with Lewy bodies and one patient developed multiple system atrophy. The average number of years between REM sleep behavior disorder and the onset of these neurodegenerative diseases is 25 years. The authors add that 89 percent of the patients with REM sleep behavior disorder who developed a neurodegenerative disease were men, though the reason for the gender difference is not known. Though this research provides an interesting connection between Parkinson's disease and REM sleep behavior disorder, HealthDay News points out that experts note the findings are not “enough by themselves to make a difference in patients' lives.”