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Sat, 30 May 1998 12:13:56, "Lanier Maddux" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: >My question to the list members and to whoever did this study, is "if a >new PWP starts taking amantadine, and if it only works for one year >which is what all reports about the drug say, then will it work again at >some later stage of the disease"? Or are they saying that it will >continue to be of some benefit for many years, from early stages to late >stages. I am taking it now as my only PD med, is it some help, but not a >lot. I have tremor as only symptom. Anyone have any clue? Hello Lanier, With most PWP amantadine has not such a strong effect on reducing PD-symptoms as L-dopa has. Also with most PWP amantadine works for a shorter periode (one year) than L-dopa (ten years). So when you have still "minor" symptoms, you can start with amantadine and when symptoms get worse you can switch to L-dopa. In my opinion the report says: amantadine is a known drug against PD-SYMPTOMS in the early stages, but now we have found out it has a second function: reducing a L-dopa-induced SIDE-EFFECT (=dyskinesia), that mostly occurs in late stages. Both drugeffects are present in the early stages, but because often in the beginning there is no L-dopa-induced dyskinesia, that effect of amantadine remains unnoticed. The effect on the symptoms wears off after about a year, but -as this study found out- the anti-L-dopa-induced-dyskinesia-effect apparently doesn't wear off. So when the PWP gets dyskinesia in the later stages, the use of amantadine won't reduce the PD-symptoms anymore, but it will reduce the dyskinesia!! Greetings, Hans. <[log in to unmask]>