Monday, October 4, 2010

defination of cure of PD

The word “cure” is often used as the stated, or assumed, ultimate goal of Parkinson’s disease research. The more I think about it, the less sure I am just what constitutes a “cure” in connection to PD. A big part of the difficulty of coming up with a definition may be because it’s tough to separate effects of the disease itself, medications and the simple process of aging.

So …. can you offer a working definition of what a “cure” is in relation to PD?

Great question.

A cure is usually when the disease has been completely eradicated from an individual patient.

Symptomatic therapy is when a therapy helps improve individual symptoms.

Disease modification is when a therapy improves the course or slows the course of the disease.

Hope that helps.

Michael S. Okun, M.D.

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