Treatments

The treatment of Parkinson’s disease mainly focuses on reducing symptoms and relieving discomfort. A combination of medication, regular physical activity, and a healthy diet is essential in managing the disease. Unfortunately, Parkinson’s is not yet curable—it is a progressive condition.

Medications for Parkinson’s disease

Unfortunately, there is currently no medication that can cure Parkinson’s disease. However, a neurologist can prescribe medicines that help reduce symptoms.

Levodopa or a dopamine agonist can reduce tremors and help you move more smoothly. These medications may cause side effects, although it’s often difficult to tell whether they’re caused by the medication or by the disease itself. Patients may experience a dry mouth, nausea, dizziness, confusion, constipation, insomnia, or excessive daytime sleepiness, as well as impulsive behaviour. Your neurologist will aim to adjust your medication in a way that minimises side effects as much as possible.

Which medications are available for Parkinson’s disease?Ask ChatGPT

Levodopa
This substance is converted into dopamine in the brain and replenishes the dopamine deficiency.

Dopamine agonists
These medications mimic the action of dopamine. They are sometimes prescribed in the early stages of the disease or later in combination with Levodopa.

Anticholinergics
Due to the lack of dopamine, another neurotransmitter in the brain—acetylcholine—can become dominant. Anticholinergics help restore the balance between the two.

Selegiline
Prevents the breakdown of dopamine. This medication is often used in the early stages of the disease or in combination with other treatments.

Therapy for Parkinson’s disease

Until science finds a cure, most Parkinson’s symptoms are treated with medication to help make the disease more manageable. Every person with Parkinson’s experiences a different course of the disease.

Your specialist or Parkinson’s nurse will always put together a personalised treatment plan.

Many patients benefit from additional therapies, ranging from counselling with a psychiatrist to specific procedures such as deep brain stimulation.

Parkinson surgeries

What surgical options are available for Parkinson’s disease?

People with Parkinson’s who have had the disease for a longer period and no longer respond well to medication may be eligible for surgery. However, not everyone is a suitable candidate for a surgical procedure, and it always carries some risk—so it’s important to discuss this carefully with your neurologist or Parkinson’s nurse.

More control over Parkinson’s symptoms

Surgery may help you gain more control over your symptoms. However, it is not a cure, and the disease and its related complaints will continue to progress over time. Most patients will still need to take medication even after surgery.

Brain stimulation for Parkinson’s

One of the most commonly used surgical techniques for Parkinson’s is deep brain stimulation (DBS). This involves placing electrodes deep within the brain. These electrodes are connected to an internal stimulator. Through targeted electrical stimulation, specific symptoms in the brain can be suppressed effectively.

Future with Parkinson’s

Promising developments in overcoming Parkinson’s

Many current studies focus on trying to replace the lost dopamine. After all, without dopamine-producing cells, the brain cannot function normally—resulting in the well-known Parkinson’s symptoms.

Research

ParkinsonFonds also funds research into gene therapy. The goal of this research is to prevent the death of nerve cells. With the support of our donors, we are also making stem cell research possible. In these studies, scientists are exploring whether dead dopamine-producing cells can be replaced with new, healthy ones. These new cells are derived from stem cells grown in the laboratory.

Promising developments for the future!