Dear Alan: Last year a psychologist from England was at Dartmouth and at
least two of us were recruited to test a special light he had developed to
help gait, balance and freezing problems. The light was a small thing
attached to a headband. The apparatus made a small sharp clearly seen spot
on the floor which was always in front of your feet when you walked. This
was before my pallidotomy and I was having gait problems and this light
worked fine. As did singing marching songs to myself or listening to
regular beat music on tapes or the Dartmouth bells.
NEXT STEP is on Discovery channel 12:30 a.m. EST (that would be early Wed
morning.
Tell me more about the SSRI's (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors)
Prozac (Eli Lilly), Paxil (SmithKline Beecham), and Zoloft (Pfizer). Some PD
specialists say SSRI's make parkinson symptoms worse, some say they boost
the levels of serotonin in PD patients and provide good relief for people who
experience akinesia or inability to move, known as "off." All the SSRI's
work with the same mechanism - the brain's chemical system - involving
neurotransmitters serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine - of which we do not
have enough and so we get depressed. Depressed patients taking one of the
antidepressant SSRI's find they feel better - more laid back. What I want to
know is what they do for PD symptoms other than giving a positive attitude
thereby making the syndrome easier to cope with. In a talk this year Dr.
Robert Iacono said he believes pallidotomy and serotonin are creating a
revolution in the treatment of Parkinsons. I believe Dr. Mat Kurth said
SSRI's should be in the public water supply. You would do suffering humanity
a service by checking with your professional contacts and giving us some
information so we don't miss out on something wonderful if in fact there is
something wonderful going on.
I have heard that some parkinsonians are taking the antihistamine
Periactin (cyproheptadine hydrochloride) for tremor. I know Benedryl
sometimes helps but Periactin is supposed to be better. Is that true? It is
a prescription antihistamine. It causes dry mouth which is OK by me.
I like your latest newsletter. It is chock full of interesting stuff and
needs to be read again so I can get into the issues. Marvin beat me to it
and I agree with him. You must be exhausted after putting it together. Many
thanks.
Barbara Yacos
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