Hello All: My PWP needs more info to overcome some difficulties he has run
into
into in 3 areas of his life. I will keep it brief but will appreciate any
feedback on these topics, even offlist, since we have his six month
rendezvous with the Neuro.&
primary care doctor at the V.A. on 8/5 (30 min. with each- I want to be
prepared!).
First, he has been on Bromocriptine with his Sinimet 200Cr the past
six months-experiencing dyskinesia and increasing, intermittent freezing and
slowness.
We've been thinking about going to a more modern agonist- perhaps Mirapex or
Requip - been watching all correspondence about them- hope to minimize the
Sinimet with best aid against the bradykinesia (slowness, lack of energy).
What
advice, exper. can anyone give,perhaps comparing the benefits/side effects of
these
two meds?
Second, he has had serious deterioration of his eyesight during the
past six
months- poor depth perception and coordination problems- has had reading
difficulties for some time but now seems to have invaded his ability to
accomplish
hand/eye coordination tasks. There has been discussions about the eye
possibly
contributing to walking problems - which we feel is highly likely - but is
there any
eye specialists available to give specific answers related to PD, the meds
side effects on eyesight, etc? Some time back there was discussion about
eyesight and
some were going to a conference for eye doctors specializing in neuro.
disorders,
but I didn't see any subsequent info. on the event (in Dallas,I think). Has
anyone
encountered any specialists in this area within the V.A. system for the
Houston,
Austin area?
Thirdly, this is a tricky one to talk about, but impacts his life
enough to need
some experienced answers if possible. His sex life and health is fine in all
areas,
except one for the past few weeks - final ejaculation - and he needs
relief......At his
age, the tendency is to blame all on the prostate - which he is being nudged
toward
a prostate exam- which he is resisting on the grounds that his urination is
fine, and
he feels in tune with his body enough to know when assistance is needed for a
realized problem (he met some real unhappy prostate patiants when getting his
hernia repairs several years ago). He is now taking a saw palmetto/zinc otc
supplement, but wonders if anyone has suggestions of where to look for the
possibilities of other sources of the problem in this area.......
Now that he has been contending with PD for l3 yr., we are most
grateful to
be able to "be in touch" with people with practical experience and he wants
to stay
armed with knowledge as much as he can to avoid the perils of "misguidance"
that
can occur in the medical field. We feel the discussions in this setting are
invaluable
for doing our best in handling this damnable condition. Now that he is
experiencing
dyskinesia and slower movement complications we also intend to investigate
the
possibilities of locating a movement disorder specialist within the V.A.
system? Does anyone know of such a "critter"? Thanks for your time - look
forward to your
replies!
Marie carepartner for husband
(70/l3)
