By Sandra Ray, Staff Writer
Some of the symptoms that you can
expect include:
- Bradykinesia – slow walking or other
movement related activities (walking, standing,
or sitting down). Bradykinesia can also be seen
in stiff facial muscles, often resulting in a
“mask-like” appearance where facial expressions
seldom change.
- Trembling in the hands, fingers, forearms,
feet, mouth, or chin
- Rigid or stiff muscles, including muscles
that suddenly freeze for no reason
- Muscle pain, usually accompanied by the
rigid or stiff muscles
- Unsteady gait and balance.
Parkinson’s is usually characterized by a
shuffling walk. The person usually looks down at the
ground, not swinging their arms, keeping their
shoulders drooped. The person can lean unnaturally
forward or backward as they move. Some people have
trouble starting to walk and often find their stride
frozen as they try to move.
While the movement issues are paramount in
helping physicians start the diagnosis process,
there could be smaller (although no less
significant), secondary symptoms that accompany the
disease. A person may or may not exhibit these
symptoms, and the disease varies widely from person
to person depending on a variety of factors.
Secondary symptoms include:
- Difficulty swallowing or chewing
- Small, cramped handwriting
- Constipation or loss of control of bowels
and/or bladder movement
- Depression, fear, and/or anxiety
- Decreased cognitive functioning, including
slower processing of information and thinking
abilities
- Fatigue and muscle pain
- Dry skin on the face and scalp
- Changes in speech, including talking in a
low, soft voice
- Sleep disturbances
- Dementia
Making the Diagnosis:
While there is no definitive diagnosis for PD,
doctors often run a battery of tests in order to
rule out other causes of the patient’s problem. In
other words, PD is a diagnosis of exclusion, with
physicians making the final determination of PD
after other avenues have been exhausted.
Some of the tests you might expect are blood
tests, urine tests, CT and MRI scans, as well as
neurological tests. A thorough neurological exam is
needed in order to rule out other areas that could
be causing the patient’s problems.
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