| While Parkinson's disease has very distinctive | | | | that comprise testing the person's reflexes, balance, |
| features, it is rather a difficult disease to identify, | | | | muscle strength walk and common movement. |
| particularly while it is in its early stages. Unfortunately | | | | Because there are a range of neurological disorders |
| there are no precise tests, which doctors can do to | | | | that have similar characteristics to Parkinson's disease, |
| establish an exact diagnosis of Parkinson's disease | | | | it's not very surprising that Parkinson's disease is so |
| and regrettably especially in its early stages it might | | | | regularly misdiagnosed. If you or a loved one has |
| be mistaken for other diseases. If and when this | | | | been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, it doesn't |
| happens, it delays or prevents the appropriate action | | | | always hurt to ask your doctor for a second opinion |
| being administered in the quickest feasible time. | | | | or even better to request to be referred to a |
| The trouble with diagnosing Parkinson's disease | | | | physician who specialises in this kind of disease. |
| accurately is just that the symptoms are not always | | | | An early accurate diagnosis of Parkinson's disease is |
| as clear as doctors would like them to be, Actually | | | | normally the key to the sufferer being able to |
| there are suggestions that up to 25% of those | | | | preserve their independence and a decent quality of |
| people presently being treated for Parkinson's disease | | | | life for fairly a long time. |
| might have been wrongly diagnosed and are thus | | | | Some neurological conditions that are regularly |
| getting inappropriate treatment. | | | | confused with Parkinson's disease include: - |
| Generally patients that are suspected of suffering | | | | Multiple system atrophy |
| from Parkinson's disease are given tests to | | | | Supranuclear palsy |
| guarantee they are certainly not suffering from an | | | | Benign Essential Tremor |
| illness that can be diagnosed using common methods | | | | Multiple Sclerosis |
| such as CT scanning, urine sampling X-ray and blood | | | | Huntington's disease |
| tests etc. However just because these tests may | | | | Striato-Nigral Degeneration |
| have an inconclusive answer, it doesn't always mean | | | | Brain tumour |
| the person is definitely suffering from Parkinson's | | | | Remaining as independent as feasible is vital to the |
| disease. Regrettably some doctors think this is the | | | | wellbeing of most sufferers of Parkinson's disease, |
| case, and will automatically offer a diagnosis of | | | | and ensuring the symptoms are kept to a minimum |
| Parkinson's disease. | | | | by both an accurate diagnosis and treatment is the |
| Tests that can be carried out to test for Parkinson's | | | | key to achieving this. |
| disease involve systematic neurological assessments | | | | |