Take part in a global Parkinson’s carers survey

News

Author: Joe McAweaneyPublished: 18 July 2019

Prep: Cook: Serves:

The European Parkinson’s Disease Association (EPDA) is inviting carers from within the Parkinson’s community to take part in a survey aiming to shine a light on the physical, financial and emotional difficulties they face.

The research – supported by French healthcare devices company Air Liquide – will be used to inform future campaigns and create valuable tools to help carers and the wider Parkinson’s community.

Russell Patten, the secretary general of the EPDA, said: “Carers are such an important part of the Parkinson’s community – they provide the firm foundations that support their loved ones who are physically living with the condition.

“However, carers’ needs and quality of life are sadly, all too often, overlooked; this can lead to devastating and lasting effects on the individual and the wider society.”

The survey is open until 6 September 2019, and is available in English, French, German Italian, Danish, Dutch, Portuguese, Slovenian and Spanish.

For more information on caring and Parkinson’s please visit the EPDA website.

Listen to Episode Two of the Parkinson’s Life podcast, “Caring for a family member with Parkinson’s”, available on SoundCloud, iTunes and YouTube.

Parkinson’s may originate in the gut, says new study

Last Month

Next Month

Go Back

Share this story

Comments

Perspectives

Tony’s two-wheel tour: “One of the best experiences of my life”

Tony reflects on his experience, which might just be the best of his life

Prostate drug could “change the lives of people with Parkinson’s”

The drug could slow down and stop Parkinson’s progression

Faces of Parkinson’s: “To restore a person’s dignity – that’s my calling”

Parkinson’s practitioners featured in new book of portraits

Improving access to Parkinson’s disease resources on Amazon’s Alexa

US non-profit Parkinson’s Foundation has announced a new partnership with Amazon’s smart speaker Alexa to help more people access resources related to Parkinson’s disease. As part of the collaboration, Alexa-enabled devices will answer questions about Parkinson’s disease in English and Spanish, citing sources from the Parkinson’s Foundation. The educational initiative is aimed at people with the condition, their care partners, family and friends and health professionals – and will help them find information on topics including Covid-19 and Parkinson’s, symptoms and early signs of the condition, and more. John L Lehr, president and CEO of the Parkinson’s Foundation, said: “We are thrilled to work with Amazon to move into this exciting world of smart speakers to help even more people gain access to the information about Parkinson’s disease they need most. Our hope is that this partnership will help us further reach and better support the Parkinson’s disease community throughout every…

Scientists at MIT uncover new clues about Parkinson’s disease

Neuroscientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), US, have developed new tools that could improve understanding of Parkinson’s disease. As part of a study, published in Science Advances, the tools were used on animals to investigate the relationship between two types of signals that are disrupted in Parkinson’s – dopamine signalling and beta-band oscillations (coordinated waves of electrical activity in the brain). The scientists found that while the animals performed certain tasks, beta-band oscillations increased while dopamine signalling declined in particular parts of the brain. Factors including an animal’s past experience and the reward value of a task also impacted the relationship between the two signals. Helen Schwerdt, a research scientist at MIT, said: “Considering electrical signals side by side with chemical signals is really important to understand how the brain works.” Ann Graybiel, a professor at MIT, added: “As these methods in neuroscience become more and more precise and…

People with Parkinson’s disease have a higher risk of dying from Covid-19, study finds

A new database study of around 80,000 Covid-19 patients has found that those living with Parkinson’s disease have a 30% higher risk of dying from the virus than those without the condition. The study – conducted by researchers at the University of Iowa Health Care, US – identified that Covid-19 patients with Parkinson’s disease were generally older, more likely to be male and less likely to be African American. As these factors could also affect the risk of death from Covid-19, the researchers adjusted their statistical models to account for differences in sex, age and race and found a significantly higher risk of dying from Covid-19 in the group of patients with Parkinson’s disease. Lead researcher Dr Nandakumar Narayanan said: “We recognise the limitations of this study; it is retrospective data from a single database, but we are confident that these data show that Parkinson’s disease is [an] independent risk factor…

All fields required

First name*
Last name*
Email address*
Enter Email Confirm Email
Country of residence*
About me*
- I have Parkinson's disease
- I am a partner / carer / family / friend of someone who has Parkinson's
- I am a healthcare professional with an interest in Parkinson's
- I work for a Parkinson's disease organisation
- Other
CAPTCHA
*
- By proceeding you agree to our
Name
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Take part in a global Parkinson’s carers survey

News

Author: Joe McAweaneyPublished: 18 July 2019

Prep: Cook: Serves:

Last Month

Next Month

Share this story

Comments

Perspectives

Tony’s two-wheel tour: “One of the best experiences of my life”

Special reports

Prostate drug could “change the lives of people with Parkinson’s”

PD in Practice

Faces of Parkinson’s: “To restore a person’s dignity – that’s my calling”

Improving access to Parkinson’s disease resources on Amazon’s Alexa

Scientists at MIT uncover new clues about Parkinson’s disease

People with Parkinson’s disease have a higher risk of dying from Covid-19, study finds

{title}

Subscribe

Take part in a global Parkinson’s carers survey

News

Author: Joe McAweaneyPublished: 18 July 2019

Prep: Cook: Serves:

Last Month

Next Month

Share this story

Comments

Related articles

Perspectives

Tony’s two-wheel tour: “One of the best experiences of my life”

Special reports

Prostate drug could “change the lives of people with Parkinson’s”

PD in Practice

Faces of Parkinson’s: “To restore a person’s dignity – that’s my calling”

Improving access to Parkinson’s disease resources on Amazon’s Alexa

Scientists at MIT uncover new clues about Parkinson’s disease

People with Parkinson’s disease have a higher risk of dying from Covid-19, study finds

{title}

Subscribe

Sign in