Thanks for the information. Do you know if an MRI accomplishes the same results or does it have to be PET or SPECT type of scan. I did have an MRI back in 05 and now my current neuro wants me to have another MRI.Thanks again for your continued help in imparting information to all of us.
Regards
John Yochim
--- On Thu, 12/4/08, rayilynlee <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
From: rayilynlee <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Diagnostic Scans for PD
To: [log in to unmask]
Date: Thursday, December 4, 2008, 11:22 AM
I had PET scan. It cost a couple thousand dollars I think. I had to pay,
Medicare and secondary didn't cover it. I used it as evidence I had PD to
get DBS which was paid for. ray
Source: Viartis
1st December 2008 - New research
SCANNING METHODS GIVE CERTAINTY IN DIAGNOSING PARKINSON'S DISEASE
European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging [2008] Nov 27; [Epub
ahead of print] (Eshuis SA, Jager PL, Maguire RP, Jonkman S, Dierckx RA,
Leenders KL.) Complete abstract
Around 25% of people diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease are wrongly
diagnosed. Very false ideas as to what the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease
are, and the symptoms of many other medical disorders coinciding with
Parkinson's Disease has made the accurate diagnosis of Parkinson's
Disease a major problem. This is especially true in the early stages of
Parkinson's Disease, because the original diagnosis of many people is based
on very mild symptoms. There are two major scanning methods that are used to
diagnose Parkinson's Disease : the SPECT scan and the PET scan. Using these
methods, the brain is scanned in order to assess the level of dopamine being
formed. For more information go to the Diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease.
This study assessed these two methods to see how reliable they were, and which
of them was better. People were assessed who either had : mild Parkinson's
Disease, severe Parkinson's Disease, or who didn't have Parkinson's
Disease at all. Both scanning methods were able to accurately discriminate
people who had Parkinson's Disease from those that didn't. When assessed
in the most appropriate parts of the brain, the accuracy was found to be 100%
for both methods. The results suggest that scanning should be a routine part of
diagnosis. However, the high costs of carrying out scans for some people and in
many countries can make this method of diagnosis prohibitive.
Rayilyn Brown
Director AZNPF
Arizona Chapter National Parkinson Foundation
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