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Hi Bob and many others, What an important organ the heart is to all of us, and yet, how ironic that PD is not usually described as having effects on heart muscle. The muscle fibres of the heart are a 3rd kind , so-called "cardiac muscle." These differ from both the involuntary, smooth fibres typical of an artery and the voluntary, striated fibres typical of a skeletal muscle. When I responded to Heidi, who initiated this thread, I tried to describe what "vascular" (blood vessel) parkinsonism may be, anatomically. I agree with you and others, Bob, that a low or interrupted dopamine supply would probably alter circulatiion of blood through the heart. Probably, a high percentage of patients with advancing PD have added risks of developing cardiac or respiratory problems caused by a lack of dopamine. These PWP's and their caregivers may not yet realize that the mssing dopamine is possibly involved in causing the dysfunction or disease. I wonder how many death certificates never mention PD, even though PD (dopamine deficiency) might contribute to, or actually be the underlying cause of death? Congestive cardiac failure , pneumonia, respiratory failure, kidney and urinary tract failure, intestinal blockage and stroke could each be due to dopamine deficiency in either - the smooth muscle fibres of the vascular structures which supply arterial blood and which drain venous blood and lymph from critical organs; or - the smooth muscle fibres of these organs and their ducts; or - the cardiac muscle fibres of the hear; or - the afferent nerves that lead to and control any of the above structures. Ivan :-) On Wed, 9 Jun 1999 06:33:54 -0400 Bob Anibal <[log in to unmask]> writes: >Sure the PD is going to affect the heart - the heart function is >controlled >by the nervous system and sure as all H--- the nervous system is >affected by >PD so ERGO the PD will afffect the heart. When Cecily had her >pacemaker >installed I asked the MD if PD could have brought about the condition >requiriing the PM. ( intermittent slow pulse and skipped beats). His >reply >was a bit on the vague side but he admitted that it was a strong >possibility >that my reasoning was right on. >Bob Anibal CG for my Princess Cecily 79/~20 ^^^^^^ WARM GREETINGS FROM ^^^^^^^^^^^^ :-) Ivan Suzman 49/39/36 [log in to unmask] :-) Portland, Maine land of lighthouses deg. F :-) ********************************************************************