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This does not mean that heavier people are more likely to suffer dyskinesia. In fact, the actual title of the article in the journal was "Relationship between weight, levodopa and dyskinesia: the significance of levodopa dose per kilogram body weight", NOT "Dyskinesia is related to weight" as indicated by the summary on the list. In general, heavier people require more of a drug to produce the same effect, positive or negative. This is because they have more of various tissues, so that a given dose produces a lower concentration of the drug in tissues than it would in a lighter person. In effect, the drug is diluted in the person's larger body weight. For example, it is commonly observed that lighter people need less alcohol to get drunk. Therefore, doses are typically expressed in terms of milligrams of drug per kilogram of body weight. The research reported in the article showed that heavier people did not suffer more dyskinesia than lighter people. ----- Original Message ----- From: "rayilynlee" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Thursday, June 26, 2008 1:57 PM Subject: Dyskinesia related to weight June 25, 2008 - New Research DYSKINESIA IS RELATED TO WEIGHT European Journal of Neurology [2008] 15 (5) : 493-496 (Sharma JC, Ross IN, Rascol O, Brooks D.) Complete abstract L-dopa dose per kilogram body weight is reported to be a significant factor for dyskinesia in Parkinson's disease. This study investigated this hypothesis. Analysis of L-dopa therapy patients revealed that people with dyskinesia had received significantly higher L-dopa dose, and also had a higher L-dopa dose per kilogram body weight. The most significant factor was the higher L-dopa dose per kilogram body weight. Younger age was the factor that was the second most related to dyskinesia. Gender, absolute L-dopa dose, weight on its own, disease duration, and initial motor Unified Parkinson's disease rating score were not significant. Higher L-dopa dose per kilogram body weight is an independently significant factor for developing dyskinesia. This relationship should be considered as an important factor in the treatment of Parkinson's Disease when aiming to prevent and manage dyskinesia, because those of a lower weight will be far more prone to dyskinesia. Rayilyn Brown Director AZNPF Arizona Chapter National Parkinson 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 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn