Edwin Partridge wrote......
>he wonders if his apnea and dexterity problems might be linked in
>some way, and whether they might be symptoms of Parkinson's Disease. Has
>anyone observed apnea as a symptom of Parkinson's disease?
Edwin, see the following abstract (note last line)
Peace, John
Title: Upper airway involvement in Parkinson's disease resulting in
postoperative respiratory failure. Title Abreviation: Can J Anaesth Date
of Pub: 1995 Apr Author: Easdown LJ; Tessler MJ; Minuk J;
Abstract: A 71-yr-old man with a six-year history of
Parkinson's disease (PD), Type II diabetes mellitus, myocardial
infarction, and remote 20 pack-year smoking history, underwent an
anterior resection of the rectum for carcinoma. Sixty hours later, the
patient suffered a respiratory arrest; his antiparkinsonian medications
had not been resumed. Preoperative flow-volume loops showed the
characteristic saw-tooth pattern of PD indicating dysfunction of the
striated muscle of the upper airway. Although postoperative respiratory
distress was managed as lower airway obstruction, at the time of
intubation there were no signs of lower airway pathology. Upper airway
dysfunction and obstruction secondary to PD is thought to have been a
contributing factor to the postoperative respiratory distress and
failure. This case is presented to draw attention to the risk of upper
airway dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease, especially with the
withdrawal of antiparkinsonian medications.
Abstract By: Author Address: Department of Anaesthesia, Sir Mortimer B.
Davis-Jewish General Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec.
