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> Like, maybe we could conduct an examination on the dead bodies of > all people suspected of having Parkinsons, eh? I wonder what the > results would be? Probably 50% accuracy, if that. Hi Billy, One "test" for PD is to take L-dopa. If it helps, you have PD, if it doesn't, you * probably * don't (but not positively). But there are lots of secondary symptoms that a good neurologist will test for, such as a history of "micrographia" (increasingly smaller letters while writing, eventually "freezing"), the "back-of-the-hand tap", the typical PD "shuffle" gait, etc. None of these is indicative by itself, but taken together they can give a profile that can be identified as PD. Then there are "degree of disability" tests, such as the Hoehn & Yahr, or the Schwab & England. Here in the Land of Oz, we have a Brain Bank (sorry, deposits only, no withdrawals or loans <grin>). A PWP can agree to donate their brain (after death, but in my case, pre-mortem probably wouldn't matter) for PD research. Hopefully, research on the donated brains will reveal something more than we know now, and lead to a cure, or at least, a 100% effective treatment. BTW, why do I get the feeling that you are just stirring the pot to see what floats to the surface? <grin> Jim * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * James F. Slattery, J.P., M.A.C.S. JandA Computing Consultancy E-mail: [log in to unmask] * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *