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New ways doctors are diagnosing Parkinson's disease 02:28 PM PST on Wednesday, February 11, 2009 By JEAN ENERSEN / KING 5 News Every nine minutes, someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. It's a neurological disorder that starts as a tremor and ends in death. Catching it early is key. Now there are several new ways doctors are diagnosing it. The key to helping people with Parkinson's: diagnose it before symptoms show. That's hard to do. Weill Cornell Medical College neurologist Dr. Flint Beal says 10 percent of patients are misdiagnosed. That's why he created a blood test. "It relies on measuring a large number of chemicals in the blood," said Beal. Comparing blood samples of 66 Parkinson's patients against healthy blood samples, compounds emerged that were specific to Parkinson's patients. Margie Chamberlain is relying on a smell test. Georgia researchers are using the test to help diagnose the disease early. People with a normal sense of smell can identify 35 out of 40 smells - people with Parkinson's, less than 20. Researchers in Japan are testing eye drops made of cocaine to diagnose Parkinson's. When 38 patients were given a five percent cocaine solution, their eyes dilated less than those without the disease, proving the Parkinson's patients had lost nerve function in their eyes. A skin test for Parkinson's is also in clinical trials. Researchers hope what they're doing now will spare others the pain of Parkinson's in the future. The National Parkinson Foundation says patients may experience initial symptoms for a year or more before they seek medical attention. 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