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Hi Ellen, Found the following three articles pertaining to Parkinson's and menopause. Note the third article requests women with Parkinson's Disease going through menopause to participate in a research study. Since there aren't too many of us out there, we should all try to participate. Mayo Clinic Researchers Find Estrogen May Provide Protection from Parkinson’s Disease ROCHESTER, MINN.—Mayo Clinic researchers have found that women who underwent hysterectomy had a threefold increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease and that women who received estrogen after menopause had a 50 percent reduced risk of developing Parkinson’s disease. The study is being published in the September 2001 edition of Movement Disorders. “Our findings imply that early loss of estrogen may increase a patient’s risk of developing Parkinson’s disease,” says Demetrius Maraganore, M.D., a Mayo Clinic neurologist and one of the study’s authors. “Our belief is that estrogen may play a role in preventing Parkinson’s disease.” The study involved the review of medical records of 72 female patients who developed Parkinson’s disease between 1976 and 1995 while they were residents of Olmsted County, Minn. The research focused on the association of Parkinson’s disease with type of menopause (natural or surgical), age at menopause and postmenopausal estrogen replacement therapy. “I think women need to consider our findings in the balance of all of the pros and cons of estrogen replacement therapy,” says Dr. Maraganore. “This is something they should discuss with their women’s health specialist, whether that be a family physician or gynecologist.” Estrogen and Parkinson Disease Estrogen Deprivation Leads To Death Of Dopamine Cells In The Brain Estrogen deprivation leads to the death of dopamine cells in the brain, a finding by Yale researchers that could have implications for post-menopausal women. The cells can be regenerated if estrogen is administered within 10 days, but by 30 days, the cells appear to be permanently lost, said D. Eugene Redmond, Jr., professor of psychiatry and neurosurgery at Yale School of Medicine and director of the Neural Transplantation and Regeneration Program. Redmond is co-investigator and spokesperson about the study published in the December issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The principal investigator was Csaba Leranth, M.D., professor of obstetrics and gynecology and neurobiology. “Without estrogen, more than 30 percent of all the dopamine neurons disappeared in a major area of the brain that produces the neurotransmitter, dopamine, “ Redmond said. “This finding is consistent with a lot of observations for which there has been, until now, no explanation. The results of the study shed light on why men, who have less estrogen in their bodies and more androgen to antagonize it, are more likely to develop Parkinson’s Disease than pre-menopausal women, and why post menopausal women are more likely then to develop the disease.” The discovery was made after the researchers removed the ovaries of female monkeys, thereby depleting their bodies of estrogen and other gonadal hormones. Within 10 days, key neurons in the brain that protect against Parkinson’s Disease disappeared. Redmond said monkeys were used in the study because, unlike usual laboratory animals, they have real menstrual cycles and many other close similarities to humans. The researchers were interested in sexual differences in dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra area of the midbrain, whose destruction is associated with Parkinson’s Disease and dementia. The researchers first sought to determine whether circulating estrogen might have long term effects by altering the number of dopamine neurons. The density of dopamine neurons was calculated in the substantia nigra of intact male and female primates; in female primates whose ovaries had been removed; and in female primates whose ovaries had been removed but were receiving estrogen replacement therapy. “After both 10 and 30 days of estrogen deprivation, apparently 30 percent of the total number of substantia nigra dopamine cells are lost,” Redmond said. “Furthermore, the density calculations showed that brief estrogen replacement restores the density of the total number of neurons in that area of the brain 10 days after the ovaries have been removed, but not 30 days later.” “These observations show the essential role of estrogen in maintaining the integrity of the nigral dopamine system involved in muscle control and higher brain functions. It suggests a new prevention or treatment strategy for patients at risk of Parkinson’s disease and certain forms of memory-impairing disorders,”he said. “This also provides another rationale for estrogen replacement therapy for postmenopausal women. Thirty percent is a very significant number of cells in this system. Maintenance, restoration, or loss of that many cells could make the difference between severe parkinsonism and having no symptoms at all.” But Redmond cautioned that women should not use the results to make a decision about estrogen replacement therapy until further studies look at the effects on dopamine cells of much longer periods of estrogen deprivation. Redmond said the researchers also want to see if much larger doses of estrogen or other hormones administered at 30 days and beyond of estrogen deprivation would resuscitate the cells. All of this must be in the context of possible side effects of hormone replacement that women should take into account in consultation with their doctors. Other investigators were Robert Roth, professor of psychiatry and pharmacology; John Elsworth, senior research scientist, psychiatry; Frederick Naftolin, M.D., professor of obstetrics and gynecology and of molecular, cellular and developmental biology, and Tamas Horvath, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology and neurobiology. The study was carried out at the St. Kitts Biomedical Research Foundation in the West Indies. Parkinson’s Disease: Estrogen Could Help Replacing Lost Estrogen Improves Symptoms Aug. 7, 2001 (Quebec City) -- The debate over whether the female hormone estrogen boosts brainpower continues to rage, although recent evidence suggests that it can be helpful for memory in postmenopausal women. Now, a recent finding shows that it may also be helpful in protecting postmenopausal women from the devastating effects of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a condition that usually affects older adults in which the part of the brain responsible for coordinating movement starts to break down. People with the disease thus suffer from difficulty with movement, stiffness, and uncontrollable tremors. There’s much discussion among healthcare professionals about whether women who undergo menopause should take female hormones, including estrogen, to replace those that are no longer being produced by the body. Hormone replacement therapy is effective in treating the uncomfortable effects that often accompany menopause, such as hot flashes and sexual problems. Recent research suggests it might not have the beneficial effects on the heart many experts hoped it did, but there is good evidence that it does help the brain. Expert Rachel Saunders-Pullman, MD, and her colleagues looked at the health records of 138 women with Parkinson’s disease who had passed menopause. Thirty-four of these women had taken hormone replacement therapy; 102 had not. Not surprisingly, the longer the women had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease, the worse their symptoms were. However, women who had taken hormone replacement therapy had less severe symptoms than those who had never taken estrogen. The older the women were, the bigger the difference in symptoms was between those who had and had not taken estrogen. According to the researchers, their findings suggest that estrogen might actually help protect the brain from the breakdown that occurs with Parkinson’s disease. Saunders-Pullman is an assistant professor of neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City. She presented the current knowledge of estrogen and Parkinson’s disease this week at a medical conference held here. “At this point ... we can’t translate this to recommending that someone should or shouldn’t take hormone replacement therapy,” Saunders-Pullman tells WebMD. However, women who have Parkinson’s disease and start or stop taking hormone replacement therapy for other reasons should be aware that doing so could affect their Parkinson’s symptoms. More evidence that estrogen plays a role in Parkinson’s disease comes from studies showing that menopausal women with this condition tend to respond better to treatment if they are taking estrogen. Also, women with Parkinson’s disease tend to have more difficulty with their symptoms a few days before and during their menstrual period, which suggests that the hormone does have a role. There is also good evidence that taking estrogen after menopause helps prevent other brain problems that women with Parkinson’s disease often suffer from, including memory problems and depression. Saunders-Pullman expects future research will help clarify the role of estrogen in preventing brain diseases like Parkinson’s and that drugs that affect estrogen and other hormones could be used to prevent or treat this condition in both women and men. © 2001 WebMD Corporation. All rights reserved. Clinical features of Parkinson’s Disease: Parkinson’s disease is a disease which generally begins in adult life. The average age of onset is 55 tp 60 years old. The symptoms of Parkinson’s disease include tremor when the affected limb is at rest, slowness of initiation and carrying-out of movement, rigidity of the neck, arms or legs and impairments in walking and balance. Parkinson’s disease is a slowly progressive disease which usually begins with symptoms in one arm or leg and which over time progressively worsen and lead to difficulties with independent walking. The diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease requires differentiation from other related neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, “Parkinson’s Plus,” progressive supranuclear palsy and others. The cause of Parkinson’s disease: PD relates to death of a population of brain cells whose important functions include the manufacture and release of the brain chemical messenger dopamine. The reasons for this degeneration are unknown. Current theories suggest that the development of Parkinson’s disease may relate to exposure to environmental toxins in a genetically sensitive individual. The treatment of Parkinson’s disease: PD treatment is presently divided into “protective” and “symptomatic” therapies. Protective therapies are those which hope to retard the degenerative process in the brain. Symptomatic therapies are those which improve the symptoms of the degenerative process without directly affecting cell degeneration. “Protective” therapies: There are no proven drug treatments for the degenerative process of Parkinson’s disease. At Rush, we have participated in research on candidate protective drugs including selegiline, vitamin C and lazabemide. There have been interesting developments regarding the use of trophic factors in PD. Trophic factors are naturally produced chemicals which may prevent or reverse cell degeneration. Human research on trophic factors at Rush is in the very preliminary stages. Symptomatic therapies: Levodopa (usually taken as the combination drug carbidopa-levodopa—Sinemet) is the mainstay of symptomatic therapy for Parkinson’s disease. While it dramatically improves the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, chronic therapy may have its pitfalls including unpredictability, intermittent over medication effects and a number of side effects. Careful adjustment of levodopa and the judicious use of other agents in combination with levodopa can lead to many years of good benefit. Dopamine agonists: Dopamine agonists may be used as the sole agent for the treatment of PD, but more often is used in combination with levodopa. Available dopamine agonists are bromocriptine, pergolide, pramipexole, and ropinirole. COMT Inhibitors: COMT inhibitors (tolcapone, Tasmar) enhance the effectiveness of levodopa by inhibiting the degradation of levodopa and dopamine. Other symptomatic therapies: Other medications used in the treatment of PD include selegiline, trihexyphenidyl, benztropine, amantadine and others. Current research projects in Parkinson’s disease: Genetic study: Sibling pairs with diagnosed Parkinson’s disease are being sought for a study of genetic factors in PD. Study candidates will be interviewed about their family history and both siblings will be examined in the office and have their blood drawn for genetic analysis. Memory functions:: Unmedicated persons with diagnosed Parkinson’s disease are being sought for tests of thinking and memory. Study involvement involves a single visit lasting up to three hours at which pencil and paper and other tests are conducted. Sleep disorders in PD: This study involves spending one to two nights in a laboratory in which sleep patterns are monitored. New drug trials: Several trials of promising new agents for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease are underway or in the planning stages. Surgical studies: Studies of implantation of electrical stimulators into the brain to treat tremor or slowness in Parkinson’s disease are also underway. Transplantation surgery for Parkinson’s disease: Rush has a long history of interest in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease with transplantation surgery. A small number of patients are being studied with newer transplantation strategies. Hallucinations: Hallucinations are a common side effect of symptomatic Parkinson’s disease therapy. Physicians at Rush are doing several studies addressing the causes and treatment of hallucinations in drug-treated Parkinson’s disease. Brain donation in Parkinson’s disease: Brains of persons dying with Parkinson’s disease are a very valuable research resource. Rush maintains a brain bank for Parkinson’s disease. Information can be obtained by phoning Kimberly Janko, B.S.N. at (312) 942-4500. Parkinson’s disease in women: The effects of female hormones (estrogen) on the clinical manifestations of Parkinson’s disease are being studied. Research participants complete diaries about motor function and make clinic visits at which blood samples for estrogen and progesterone levels are obtained. If you are interested in participating in one of these research projects, please contact the study coordinator at (312) 942-4500. Best Regards, Vicky Lynn __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Movies - coverage of the 74th Academy Awards® http://movies.yahoo.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn