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Ted Nelson writes: >The other day one of my sons , Mark asked me about what sounded like a resting > tremor in his left hand. Since this seemed to be a very occasional thing I > told him to keep a record of the occasions , but not to be to concerned. > I got to thinking about Mark, Then I started to worry about Mark. Now I > am starting to worry about Mark's Identical twin brother Ken. Mark and Ken are > 35 years old . I was diognosed with Parkinsons when I was about 57. > Does anyone have any thoughts. > I attended a symposium in Phoenix a couple of years ago that featured Roger DuVoisin as a speaker on the hereditary aspects of PD. He had just established the hereditary link in his research, and gave a detailed presentation. (Many people REALLY relaxed during this session ;-) ). I followed it carefully, as I onset at 38, and believe that I have an undiagnosed aunt (paternal) and undiagnosed deceased grandmother (paternal). Dr. DuVoisin had studied records of some large families that had generation after generation of PD, and concluded a definite hereditary link for some families (not all), and that when there actually was a hereditary thing happening (as opposed to environmental), the onset came earlier and earlier for each ensuing generation, like a full decade earlier each time, a grim thought for those of us who onset young ourselves. A grim thought for all of us I guess. On the other side of this discussion is the lady who introduced herself at our local monthly APDA meeting. She was from a midwestern farm community (I think Kansas) and said her husband and both of her sons all have PD. My heart froze, and then she said "BOTH OF MY SONS ARE ADOPTED." Go figure. Kathie Tollifson [log in to unmask]