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Dear All: I am in the process of writing thankyou's, getting everything cleaned up from the meeting and catching my breath. I will give you a little teaser and answer some of Barb's questions: >Dear Alan: I've been waiting to hear about your meeting with Dr. Laitinen >on Saturday. Did your panel of ten post pallidotomies represent different >time spans - and how many months for the longest? I heard from Dr. L. >recently and he said he is more and more convinced that my original decision >to have surgery before drugs had caused side effects was wise and that those >patients whom he has operated bilaterally before the L-dopa dosage was high, >manage now, seven years later, very well. He said he is now ready to propose >early surgery, sometimes without any L-dopa (like me). Dr. Laitinen spoke for about 75 minutes. I had to cut him off before he put us really in time problems. He talked about 280+ pallidotomies and explaned complications if any. The scotoma is or should be gone as an outcome. This went with the change in procedure over a year ago. He does not believe in doing bilateral pallidotomies. He thinks they are too risky. He does the second side in 6 or more months after the first side. (Lenore Rabjohns had the second side done March 6.) Don Berns attended my meeting. He is truly "healed." I last saw him all rolled up in a ball in Pismo Beach. He stood infront of me without a symptom on either side. He had been skiing with his church group. There were about 8 pallidotomies at the meeting, 3 thalamotomies and 1 fetal tissue (looking for a pallidotomy). The panel did not happen. Dr. Laitinen stayed for the entire meeting talking to anyone who wanted to talk to him. He participated in Tai Chi, sat with the caregivers, listened to sex and sensuality and saw Tom Riess's virtual reality results. He had a wonderful time, he said. I will have to listen again to his presentation as to any reference about early pallidotomy. Dr. Iacono has done at least 4 bilateral pallidotomies. Recently he implanted a wire in the globus pallidus of a lady. She can control symptoms by electric stimulation. She was demostrated at the neurosurgical meeting in San Diego earlier last week. > I haven't seen a message from Don Berns recently. Is he still doing >well with his bilateral? He had his about 3 1/2 months ago. Dr. Iacono's >first patient to have a bilateral. Has he done more? I forgot to ask Dr. >Laitinen if he is now doing both sides together - when I had my pallidotomy >last May, he wasn't doing both sides at once, but waiting at least six months >for the other side. I am thinking about getting the left side done - that's >he tricky side because of the proximity of the optic canal. > I started on Sinemet CR in January - 25/l00 three times a day. Although >that new tablet it not scored I do cut it in half because most days I do fine >:on half doses. I don't like cutting a controlled release tablet, but what >choice do I have for cutting back. The drug company is stupid for not >scoring the new tablet. Wouldn't have cost them a penny and would have made >the CR more useful for more patients. The CR 25/100 are not scored because they loose their sustained release function when broken. This is according to the manufacture. I have not seen papers from the drug trials verifying this point. I would take 10/100 cut in half, rather than braking a CR jr. It should be more cost effective and achieve the same results. > Did anyone tape the Connie Chung segment on PD - and can I get one? > Regards....Barbara Yacos I have a special version of the Eye-to-Eye segment which identifies the members of YPSN. I showed the special version at the meeting and now have a number of requests for the it. I will add you to the list. Until later, take care. Alan Bonander ([log in to unmask])