Morphine pumps are used when a patient is in extreme pain.  These devices 
are not usually used in PD and can cause loss of function in PWP.
----------
Mary Ann (CG Jamie 68/28 with PD, died 11/20/07)
www.bentwillowfarm.org
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Nic Marais" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, August 23, 2011 4:00 AM
Subject: Re: Check out How a dog helps treat Parkinson's | The Sun 
|Woman|Health|Health


> Morphine pump??
>
> Is there something about this disease that I don't know about yet??
>
> Nic 59/17
>
>
> On 22 August 2011 19:02, <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> _How  a dog helps treat Parkinson's | The Sun |Woman|Health|Health_
>> (
>> http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/woman/health/health/2970830/How-a-dog-helps-tr
>> eat-Parkinsons.html)
>>
>>
>>
>> ASTONISHED medics have revealed a remarkable treatment for Parkinson's
>> disease - a PET DOG.
>> Incredible  improvements in a 28-year-old woman with the brain disease 
>> have
>> been credited to  her pooch.
>> Three years after  being diagnosed, she was taking large doses of four
>> different drugs a day to  control symptoms.
>> She also had a  morphine pump for 14 hours a day and was deteriorating
>> fast.
>> But after being  given a highland terrier by a friend, doctors reported
>> major improvements in  symptoms and a drop in the drugs she needed.
>> Amazingly, she no  longer needed her daily morphine.
>> Doctors at  Imperial College London, who report her case in the Journal 
>> Of
>> Neurology, said:  "Remarkably sustained benefits occurred, with 
>> improvement
>> in her walking and  symptoms including appetite, sleep and bowel 
>> function,
>> as well as  socialisation."
>> Docs are unsure  how the dog had such a dramatic effect, but they say 
>> that
>> having to walk, feed  and look after the pet encouraged her to exercise
>> regularly.
>> One theory is that  the responsibility of looking after the dog and the
>> exercise involved may have  had an effect on dopamine, the brain chemical
>> involved in both the movement and  thinking areas of the brain.
>> It is the loss of  dopamine-producing cells in the brain that leads to
>> Parkinson's and some drugs  used to treat it stimulate areas of the brain
>> that
>> produce the chemical.
>> Allergies
>> Having the pet may  have led to a stimulation of dopamine-producing cells
>> in a similar way.
>> It is the first  time these kind of effects have been reported in
>> Parkinson's, but pets have been  shown to have other health benefits too.
>> And it's not just  dogs. Cats, rabbits and even goldfish can cut the risk
>> of allergies in children,  lower the chances of developing hayfever and
>> reduce blood pressure. . .
>> HEART  ATTACK: Having pets  lowers the risk of dying after a heart attack
>> by three per cent, according to a  report from Purdue University in
>> America.
>> ALLERGY: Children exposed  to two or more dogs or cats during the first
>> year of life were 66 to 77 per cent  less likely to have any allergies, a
>> study
>> at the Medical College Of Georgia,  USA, found.
>> DEPRESSION: Researchers at  the University Of  Missouri found levels of
>> serotonin increased after owners stroked their dogs. Antidepressants work
>> by
>> increasing levels of the same brain chemical.
>> HAYFEVER:  The allergy, which effects around 15 per cent of people in the
>> UK, is 30 per cent lower  among cat owners, according to Japan's Himeji
>> Medical Association.
>> ECZEMA: Children with  dogs in the home for the first three years of life
>> were half as likely to  develop eczema, Marshfield Clinic in America 
>> found.
>> BLOOD  PRESSURE: One study at the  Baker Medical Research Institute,
>> Australia, showed pet owners had  significantly lower blood pressure than
>> non-owners.
>> OVERALL  HEALTH: Older people with  dogs make 21 per cent fewer visits to 
>> a
>> doctor than non-owners, research at the  University Of  California 
>> showed.
>>
>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:
>> [log in to unmask]
>> In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn
>>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: 
> mailto:[log in to unmask]
> In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn 

----------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask]
In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn