Actually, the Hoehn & Yahr Scale, as well as
most other scales, were developed more for the research clinician rather than as
something the patient and family would use. Scientists needed a way to
more accurately define - for other scientists reading reports of their
research progress - the levels of severity of the patients
participating in a particular study. This is important so that as one
reads through a report on a study on a drug being tested, readers can instantly
know how progressed (or limited due to their symptoms) each study participant is
and thus be able to better utilize the results from these studies. For
example, if a report talks about a study using a drug on Stage 3 patients, one
instantly can understand the basic level of disability these patients
experience. Then, to read that this particular drug helped 50% of the
study participants to revert to Stage 1 or 2, one can instantly understand
the level of benefit derived from this drug.
As the PD population became more educated and began
seeking out more and more of the professional/scientists' level of materials,
they became aware of these scales and some began using or referring to them as
ways of assessing their own disabilities. Some even felt these scales
offered a "typical" progression pattern of Parkinson's disease.
Again, these are not the purposes for which these scales were
designed.
Jeanne Lee-Rosner
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