Parkinson’s 101

Parkinson’s 101

Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative brain disorder, or motor system disorder that can make walking, talking and other everyday tasks difficult to complete. Between 50 and 60 thousand Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson’s each year.

Symptoms generally develop slowly over years. The progression of symptoms is often a bit different from one person to another due to the diversity of the disease. People with Parkinson’s may experience:
• Tremor, mainly at rest and described as pill rolling tremor in hands. Other forms of tremor are possible
• Slowness of movement
• Limb rigidity
• Gait and balance problems

Home Health is an option for patients with Parkinson’s. Support and guidance is important when making this decision and throughout the journey of care. Living at home can be comfortable and safe if certain precautions and preventative steps are taken. Most falls take place in the bathroom. This is an important room to survey and make sure it is safe. Read our handout about the importance of bathroom safety. The kitchen is also a difficult room to navigate and manage, so some reorganization may be helpful to make living at home easier.

The cause remains largely unknown. Although there is no cure, treatment options vary and include medications and surgery. While Parkinson’s itself is not fatal, disease complications can be serious. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) rated complications from Parkinson’s Disease as the 14th cause of death in the United States.

Aegis Homecare provides home health to patients with many diseases, Parkinson’s included. Physical, speech, and occupational therapies are offered to enhance the patient’s quality of life. Constant exercise and a well-balanced diet can help improve the patient’s health and disease management.

The first step to helping residents live well with Parkinson’s disease is to understand the disease and the progression, if you need additional information regarding Parkinson’s please call an Aegis Community Liaison at 480-219-4790

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