Azilect, a Synopsis of Parkinson's Disease Treatment Option

New cases of Parkinson’s Disease are diagnosed in 50,000 Americans each year.  As a chronic, progressive and debilitating disease, scientists have devoted countless hours to the research needed to slow the progression of this disease. With Parkinson’s affecting both men and women equally, treatment of symptoms and a potential cure is continously researched.

Parkinson’s Disease’s debilitating factors result from a degeneration of the brain cells which produce dopamine. Dopamine, found naturally in the body, is the brain chemical which aides in the communication path, between brain and body, to initiate and control movement in a normal fashion. Without dopamine, the brain and body do not communicate efficiently which results in various symptoms such as tremors, involuntary movements and irregular gait.

In an effort to further cure the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease, Teve Pharmaceutical Industries, has developed a new drug, approved by the FDA, called Azilect. I Although,initially approved for use as a single drug therapy in the early stages of Parkinson’s Disease, it is now recommended as a combination therapy in patients with advanced Parkinson’s who currently take Levodopa.  In treatment of Parkinson’s Disease, Azilect, when given once daily, has shown to improve function and, in 46 percent of the cases studied, no additional dopaminergic drug was required. When treated in the first six months, patients showed significantly less symptom progression than patients who were left untreated.