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July 4, 2007, 7:05PM Parkinson's skin patch 'a big plus' The recently approved method is now available at Houston doctors' offices By TODD ACKERMAN Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle James Papadakis was two years into his battle with Parkinson's disease and his symptoms had taken a turn for the worse when his Baylor College of Medicine doctor suggested an experimental new skin patch back in 2002. Instead of taking pills three or four times a day, he could just apply one of the patches once a day and it would supply medication continuously over the 24 hours. It also offered the prospect of delaying the disease progression that his increase in tremors suggested. Five years later, Papadakis swears by it. "It's a big plus," said the 67-year-old Houston real estate broker. "It's easy to put on, it's more effective and it's once a day. You don't have to worry whether you took all your pills ... There's really no downside." This month, the Neupro patch finally makes it into Houston doctors' offices. After years of study, it was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in May for patients in the early stage of the degenerative brain disease. The patch, which can be applied anywhere on the body, delivers a drug called rotigotine, which acts like a brain chemical that is deficient in people with Parkinson's. It represents an alternative to levodopa, long considered the gold standard of treatment, which delivers diminishing results over time. In a study published in the journal Neurology in January, patients who wore the patch showed a significant easing of their symptoms. The symptoms of those receiving a placebo got worse. "It's a major breakthrough in the treatment of Parkinson's," said Dr. Joseph Jankovic, Baylor professor of neurology and director of the school's Parkinson's Disease Center and Movement Disorders Clinic. "I think a lot of patients will benefit from it." In healthy brains, cells produce a chemical called dopamine, which helps coordinate the body's movements. In Parkinson's, dopamine-producing brain cells falter and die, leading to symptoms such as tremors. Until now, in tablet form or by injections, patients have mostly taken a compound that activates dopamine receptors. Those drugs can vary substantially from hour to hour, depending on how often they're taken and how quickly they're cleared from the body, causing fluctuations in symptoms. The patch provides a steady stimulation of the dopamine receptors. Roughly 1.5 million Americans have Parkinson's and 600,000 new cases are diagnosed each year, most often in people older than 60. The disease's four primary symptoms are trembling in the hands, arms, legs, jaw and face; stiffness of the limbs and trunk; impaired balance and coordination; and slowness of movement. As the symptoms become more pronounced, patients may have difficulty walking, talking or completing other simple tasks. In trials, the Neupro patch's most common side effects were skin reactions at the patch site, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, drowsiness and insomnia. Most of those side effects are typical for the class of drug. [log in to unmask] Rayilyn Brown Board Member AZNPF Arizona Chapter National Parkinson's Foundation [log in to unmask] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn