Category Archives: Parkinson’s Treatment

Contact Information Available for logged-in reporters only Newswise Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have launched a Phase III clinical trial to evaluate the drug isradipine, a calcium channel blocker often used to treat high blood pressure, as a potential new treatment for Parkinson disease (PD). The goal of the study is to determine whether the drug can slow the progression of the disease by keeping the brains dopamine-producing cells healthier for a longer period of time. Isradipine has been demonstrated to be safe and tolerable in patients with Parkinsons disease, said Irene Litvan, MD, site investigator and director of the Movement Disorder Center at UC San Diego Health System. This new study will determine whether the drug can be effective in slowing the progression of the disease and could, thereby, complement existing symptomatic treatments to improve the quality of life of individuals with the disease. PD is a progressive neurological disorder that affects an individuals speed and amplitude of movements and decreases the speech volume. Patients with PD experience stiffness or rigidity of the arms and legs and walking difficulties in addition to tremors in their hands, arms, legs or jaw. Patients with PD … Continue reading →

An aging population and an increased incidence of debilitating illnesses such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease means there is pressure on technology to offer assistance with healthcare -- monitoring and treatment. Research published in the International Journal of Ad Hoc and Ubiquitous Computing points to remote monitoring as offering a way to improve patient care and even accelerate medical research. Andrew Thomas formerly of Birmingham City University, UK and colleagues there and at the University of Wolverhampton, UK, the Technical University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain, Ritsumeikan University, in Kusatsu and Fukuoka Institute of Technology, Japan, suggest there is a need to develop pervasive technologies that monitor patients at home, where medically viable so as to reduce the pressure on general practitioners and other healthcare workers and their limited resources. "Those 'smart care spaces' require use of sensors and intelligent computer systems to support the needs of the cared-for, carers and medical personnel," the team reports. The judicious use of technology and the development of a smart care spaces will hopefully lead to great improvements in the quality-of-life through comfort and adequate medical-monitoring of patients with a range of serious, chronic and degenerative conditions where current practice does not cope well … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 29-Sep-2014 Contact: Bonnie Prescott bprescot@bidmc.harvard.edu 617-667-7306 Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center @BIDMChealth BOSTON Over the past several decades, brain stimulation has become an increasingly important treatment option for a number of psychiatric and neurological conditions. Divided into two broad approaches, invasive and noninvasive, brain stimulation works by targeting specific sites to adjust brain activity. The most widely known invasive technique, deep brain stimulation (DBS), requires brain surgery to insert an electrode and is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of Parkinson's disease and essential tremor. Noninvasive techniques, including transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), can be administered from outside the head and are currently approved for the treatment of depression. Brain stimulation can result in dramatic benefit to patients with these disorders, motivating researchers to test whether it can also help patients with other diseases. But, in many cases, the ideal sites to administer stimulation have remained ambiguous. Exactly where in the brain is the best spot to stimulate to treat a given patient or a given disease? Now a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) helps answer this question. Led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess … Continue reading →

Research by UCLA biochemists may lead to a new treatment -- or even a cure -- for PH1, a rare and potentially deadly genetic kidney disease that afflicts children. Their findings also may provide important insights into treatments for Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other degenerative diseases. Led by Carla Koehler, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry in the UCLA College, the researchers identified a compound called dequalinium chloride, or DECA, that can prevent a metabolic enzyme from going to the wrong location within a cell. Ensuring that the enzyme -- called alanine: glyoxylate aminotransferase, or AGT -- goes to the proper "address" in the cell prevents PH1. The findings were published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and will appear later in the journal's print edition. In humans, AGT is supposed to go to an organelle inside the cell called the peroxisome, but for people with a particular genetic mutation, the enzyme mistakenly goes instead to the mitochondria -- tiny power generators in cells that burn food and produce most of the cells' energy -- which causes PH1. Koehler's team demonstrated that adding small amounts of DECA, which is FDA-approved, to cells in a Petri … Continue reading →

The Bachmann-Strauss Dystonia and Parkinson Foundation will hold its seventh Annual Jake's Ride for Dystonia Research Sunday, Sept. 28. The community-wide bike tour attracts more than 1,000 bikers or walkers and 100 volunteers annually and features live entertainment, a silent auction, raffle prizes, food, and arts and crafts activities for children. Jake's Ride organizers have set of goal of raising $400,000 this year for dystonia research. The event has raised more than $1.7 million in six years, funding 21 research grants for dystonia and three movement disorder fellowships. Jake's Ride is named for Jake Silverman, a 17-year old township resident who was diagnosed with early onset childhood dystonia in 2008. Closely related to Parkinson's disease, dystonia, a neurological movement disorder that causes uncontrollable and painful spasms, affects at least 500,000 in North America, one-third of whom are children. The year he was diagnosed with dystonia, Jake underwent Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital. Six years after surgery, Jake is entering college and, while he has made significant progress, his dystonia is not cured. The Bachman-Strauss Dystonia and Parkinson Foundation, along with the Silverman family, and a Jake's Ride committee, launched the first Jake's Ride for Dystonia Research … Continue reading →

Acorda Therapeutics Inc. (ACOR: Quote) is all set to acquire Civitas Therapeutics, a privately-held biopharmaceutical company, for $525 million in cash. The acquisition brings in CVT-301, a phase III treatment candidate for OFF episodes of Parkinson's disease, to Acorda's stable. The pivotal phase III study of CVT-301 is expected to begin enrolling in early 2015 and if successful, a filing for regulatory approval in the United States is expected by the end of 2016. ACOR rose 28.18% to close Wednesday's trading at $37.62. Cynosure Inc.'s (CYNO: Quote) flagship PicoSure Picosecond Laser Workstation with its new disposable energy delivery system, the FOCUS lens array, has received FDA clearance for the treatment of wrinkles. The PicoSure system gained FDA clearance to treat acne scars last month. The device also has FDA clearance for the removal of tattoos and benign pigmented lesions. CYNO closed Wednesday's trading at $22.03, down 0.50%. Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc. (INO: Quote) is advancing its DNA vaccine for Ebola into a phase I clinical trial in collaboration with GeneOne Life Science Inc., an international DNA vaccine manufacturer in which Inovio holds a minority interest. There is no vaccine or standard of care treatment for people infected with the Ebola virus, … Continue reading →

NEW YORK (AP) Acorda Therapeutics Inc. plans to buy privately-held Civitas Therapeutics for $525 million in cash as the drugmaker seeks to expand into treatments for Parkinson's disease. Acorda, based in Ardsley, New York, makes drugs for patients with multiple sclerosis, spasticity and those who are experiencing pain after a shingles infection. Civitas, based in Chelsea, Massachusetts, is currently testing an inhaler treatment, called CVT-301, which reduces tremors and reduced movement caused by Parkinson's disease. A late stage study on CVT-301 will start next year, and if successful, the company will file for U.S. regulatory approval by the end of 2016. Acorda said about one million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with Parkinson's diseases, and the treatment could bring in as much as $500 million in sales a year in the U.S. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. Shares of Acorda jumped $2.54, or 8.7 percent, to $31.89 in premarket trading 30 minutes before the market open Wednesday. Read this article: Acorda to buy developer of Parkinson's treatment … Continue reading →

New treatment giving more life to prostate cancer sufferers A new "smart bomb" treatment which selects and destroys cancerous areas of bone has been developed to give prostate cancer sufferers more life. Jim Thomas is the third generation to run the Thomas Jewellery family business, but with prostate cancer spreading aggressively his time is running out. Im looking for something else now to fix the problem and delay my departure. Its a smart bomb that selects the areas in the bones that are cancerous, and destroys those cancerous areas without affecting other healthy tissue bone marrow or normal bone, Professor Costello said.Around 120,000 Australian men are living with prostate cancer at any one time, but a new treatment could provide new hope. Photo: 7News The majority of men who trialled the treatment lived an extra four months, and some lived for an extra one or two years. All men who participated in the trial experienced less pain. I'm running out of options, and this new one thats on the horizon could give me an extra few months and that would be great, Jim said. Professor Costello said early detection is the best way of preventing prostate cancer spreading, starting with … Continue reading →

Parkinson's Treatment - exclusive - 3 ) pdf 1 http://goo.gl/Z68Fos 2 http://goo.gl/C2Q2LN 3 http://www.pdf-archive.com/2014/09/20/untitled-pdf-document/ By: Clinic Helath … Continue reading →

By Trisha Henry, CNN updated 5:06 PM EDT, Wed September 17, 2014 Researchers don't yet understand why migraines might be linked to Parkinson's disease. STORY HIGHLIGHTS (CNN) -- People who suffer from migraines with aura during middle age have double the risk of developing Parkinson's disease or other movement disorders later in life than those who do not, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Neurology. Migraines are the most common brain disorder in both men and women, according to the World Health Organization, and one of the top 10 most debilitating conditions. Aura is the term used to describe the feelings and symptoms that happen shortly before and during a migraine. "Roughly one-third of affected individuals can predict the onset of a migraine because it is preceded by an 'aura,' visual disturbances that appear as flashing lights, zig-zag lines or a temporary loss of vision," according to the National Institutes of Health. Researchers followed more than 5,000 people between the ages of 33 and 65 for 25 years, who were originally enrolled in a clinical trial designed to study heart disease in Iceland. The participants were interviewed about migraine symptoms in middle age and then, about 25 … Continue reading →