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Permax gave us quite a time recently; Jeff (45/7) was taking 75 mg Permax but the neuro told him to increase (the Permax) to 150 mg per day. We began to notice Jeff becoming increasingly confused and losing concentration easily. His short-term memory became terrible and he was getting increasingly 'spacey'. Couldn't remember much one minute to the next and the fatigue was worse. We started to consider making some permanent lifestyle/business changes when he called the neuro to report his decline. The nurse suggested to cut the Permax; that it could cause confusion and lack of concentration. He's now back down to 85 mgs/day and back to 'normal' as well. Thank goodness. It really made us think about the issue of side effects. Lisa Carper > The recent survey of doses of pergolide used for PD is remarkable in >the range required to obtain theerapeutic effects with minimum toxicity. >About 10 months experience of combining sinemet (25/100 mg, 7 times in 12 >hours) I have used 0.25-1.25 mg pergolide. Below 0.5 mg p.d. there is no >consistent response; at and above 1 mg elicits increasing fatigue, abdominal >pain, hyperkinesias, and, worst of all: hallucinations. These are rarely >threatening but certainly interrupt continuity of concnentration and >effective cognition. I am sometimes startled by rapidly moving illusions, a >danger to driving. > Thus, pergolide is a useful adjunct to sinemet against dyskinasias >and painful muscle spasms, but the combination has limited thereapeutic >effects. Addition of still other adjunct drugs provides little or no >improvement. > Steven > > --