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Hello all-- I have written several times on behalf of my mother who was diagnosed with PD about 1.5 years ago. Until recently we have had no reason to question that diagnosis as her symptoms appeared to be classic PD. But for several reasons, we are now questioning that diagnosis. I am hoping that perhaps some people in this group are familiar with parkinson look-alikes, i.e. other problems that cause PD-like symptoms. Our first reason for suspiscion is that Sinemet seems to have no effect whatsoever on her. There is no on/off. She can't tell the difference between when she has taken it and when she hasn't. In fact, she has gotten worse over the last six months (since starting Sinemet) than she did in the whole first year since diagnosis. Our second reason for questioning the diagnosis is that PD typically progresses rather slowly. It was a slow progression for my mom at first but recently it has changed so dramatically that I could see a difference in her in a matter of *days*. Two weeks ago, she was playing tennis, had a strong clear voice, could drive a car and keep up with most normal activities. Now, she cannot retain her balance to walk around the house without falling. Her speaking is very slow. She appears to be intensely uncomfortable and does not wish to discuss the problems she is having. It is as if her PD has progressed five years over a period of five days. In all my reading on PD I have never heard of such a rapid change in someone except if they have experienced some sort of traumatic event, which she hasn't. We are really at a loss. We are also looking for a new neurologist, one who has more experience with PD. If anyone has any ideas about what is going on here, I would love to hear them. I have really been enjoying this group and am learning a lot. Keep up the good work. --Ann Strozewski