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Dear Nic Yes, you are right. The same goes for screening healthy people for Parkinson's - there is no benefit as there is no proven treatment which can prevent or slow down PD. Dr Chew > Date: Tue, 14 Jul 2009 10:27:54 +0200 > From: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Re: Study may aid early diagnosis of Parkinson's > To: [log in to unmask] > > This statement; > > "Introducing the tests in clinics as part of regular health exams could > result in earlier diagnosis of Parkinson's, allowing the disease progression > to be controlled with diet and medication,'' " > > puzzles me. As far as I know there is no medication available that controls > the progression of PD. Nor can diet. Therefore there is absolutely no > physical benefit in being diagnosed earlier. > > > Nic 57/15 > > > On Tue, Jul 14, 2009 at 7:24 AM, mschild <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > > Study may aid early diagnosis of Parkinson's, attention deficit. > > > > > > Canwest News ServiceJuly 13, 2009 > > > > > > KINGSTON, Ont. - Studies into how quickly and accurately we are able to > > control our eye movements could help diagnose attention deficit > > hyperactivity > > disorder and the early onset of Parkinson's disease, researchers at Queen's > > University said Monday. > > ``An important aspect of what makes us human is the ability to control our > > behaviour,'' physiology professor Douglas Munoz said. ``Our project > > investigates how the brain provides this control by observing eye > > movements.'' > > In the study, participants from a wide range of age groups were placed in a > > magnetic resonance imaging unit that measures and records brain activity. > > They > > were then shown a series of lights and asked to move their eyes toward or > > away > > from the illumination. The speed and accuracy of their eye movements were > > recorded and correlated to the activity being documented in specific areas > > of > > their brains. > > ``In preliminary experiments, kids with ADHD could not help but look at the > > light no matter if they were asked to look away or not. Normal brain > > activity > > was also decreased,'' Munoz said. ``When they took their ADHD medication > > the > > success rates, and the activity in certain areas of the brain, increased. > > This > > test could, therefore, be used to examine the effectiveness of new ADHD > > medication.'' > > He said the same holds true for people with Parkinson's disease, a > > neurological disorder that affects the brain's motor control systems. > > ``In preliminary experiments, patients with the disease had a consistent > > pattern of eye movement time and brain activity. Introducing the tests in > > clinics as part of regular health exams could result in earlier diagnosis > > of > > Parkinson's, allowing the disease progression to be controlled with diet > > and > > medication,'' Munoz said. > > The researchers were also able to see which sections of the participant's > > brains were active, and which were less active, with age. > > Munoz said the studies will continue over the next five years. The project > > has > > received close to $1 million in funding from the Canadian Institutes of > > Health > > Research. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > 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 _________________________________________________________________ See all the ways you can stay connected to friends and family http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowslive/default.aspx ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn