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Biomedical subjects

D Rail

Publications and source records attributed to D Rail.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1994

The Sydney Multicentre Study of Parkinson's disease: a randomised, prospective five year study comparing low dose bromocriptine with low dose levodopa-carbidopa.

149 previously untreated patients with Parkinson's disease were recruited over a three year period and randomly allocated to either low dose levodopa-carbidopa (< or = 600/150 mg/day) or low dose bromocriptine (< or = 30 mg/day). A five year follow up is reported on the 126 patients who completed the dose titration and who have not developed features of atypical Parkinsonism. Levodopa-carbidopa in low dosage adequately controlled symptoms in most patients and delayed the appearance of dyskinesia and end of dose failure for about two years longer than conventional doses. Only a few patients could be managed for more than one year on low dose bromocriptine alone; these patients had mild disease and asymmetric signs. Patients randomised to bromocriptine did not develop dyskinesia or troublesome end of dose failure until levodopa-carbidopa was added. The prevalence of dyskinesia in this group was lower than in patients given levodopa-carbidopa alone. The prevalence of end of dose failure was similar in the two randomisation groups once levodopa was introduced.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Reliability of the Columbia scale for assessing signs of Parkinson's disease.

Inter- and intrarater reliability in scoring the signs of Parkinson's disease using the original Columbia scale and a modified version of this, the Sydney scale, were assessed in five neurologists participating in a long-term study of Parkinson's disease. Scoring was done on video recordings of 41 patients whose disability ranged from mild to severe. Although all the neurologists were familiar with the scales and had received training designed to produce uniformity of scoring, interrater reliability was poor. The mean score for the Columbia scale varied from 18.6 to 30 and for the Sydney scale from 15.2 to 23.2. By contrast, intrarater reliability was good. This study highlights the limitations of clinical rating scales in Parkinson's disease when more than one rater is used. In designing clinical trials, every effort should be made to ensure that the same patient is always assessed by the same rater.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1989

The Sydney Multicentre Study of Parkinson's disease: a report on the first 3 years.

One hundred and twenty nine de novo patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease are being followed over a 5 year period in a double-blind multicentre study comparing low-dose bromocriptine (less than 30 mg/day) with low-dose levodopa-carbidopa (less than 600/150 mg/day). Sixty six patients have been randomised to bromocriptine and 63 patients to levodopa-carbidopa. Improvement has been greater in the levodopa-carbidopa group than in the bromocriptine group. Involuntary movements have so far only occurred in patients on levodopa-carbidopa, the incidence being much lower than is usually described with conventional doses. Mild, end-of-dose failure has occurred in both treatment groups; however, no patient has developed the "on-off" phenomenon. Low-dose levodopa-carbidopa appears to be a more effective anti-Parkinsonian treatment than low-dose bromocriptine but more prone to cause dyskinesia.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

The neuropsychology of de novo patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease: the effects of age of onset.

One hundred de novo patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) were classified into two groups according to age of onset of symptoms. Seventy two patients were under 70 years and 28 were 70 years and over. All patients were given neurological and neuropsychological assessments, and the severity of the signs was rated on a modified Columbia scale. The neuropsychological assessment was also administered to 50 age-and-education-matched controls. The neuropsychological test battery included tests of verbal learning, visual memory, verbal fluency, visuospatial skill, simple and choice reaction time, language and maze learning. The late-onset patients had significant impairment in nonverbal reasoning, auditory verbal learning, visual memory and choice reaction time in contrast to early-onset patients and controls. A relationship was found between bradykinesia and widespread cognitive impairment. Severity of tremor was found to be significantly correlated with impairment in auditory verbal learning, visual memory and increased choice reaction time, while rigidity was found to be associated with cognitive impairment in verbal fluency and visuospatial skill. Using DSM II criteria, 39% of the late-onset and 8% of the early-onset group were classified as demented. Dementia was more common in patients with bilateral symmetrical disease and in those patients with marked tremor and bradykinesia. The pattern of cognitive impairment in PD was consistent with that associated with a subcortical dementia. This study confirms that the expression of PD is markedly influenced by the age of onset.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1987

The Sydney multicentre study of Parkinson's disease. The first 18 months.

Low-dose bromocriptine therapy and low-dose levodopa-carbidopa therapy are being compared in a double-blind study over a five-year period as treatment for newly-diagnosed patients with Parkinson's disease. Ninety-four patients had entered the study by January 1986 and of these, 50 had been followed for six months or more. Preliminary results confirm that many patients with Parkinson's disease can be managed satisfactorily in the early stages of the disease with low-dose therapy. Three patients, all of whom were receiving levodopa-carbidopa therapy, developed dyskinesia. Twelve patients who had received bromocriptine had an inadequate response or developed confusion or postural hypotension. Of these patients, six had a poor response to subsequent levodopa-carbidopa therapy. While the initial improvement that results from low-dose bromocriptine therapy and low-dose levodopa-carbidopa therapy is less than one would expect with conventional doses of these agents, it is hoped that this approach will reduce the incidence of long-term side-effects such as dyskinesia and fluctuations.

Australia↗
PubMed1981

Post-encephalitic Parkinsonism: current experience.

The diagnosis of post-encephalitic Parkinsonism is rarely entertained today. In this paper we discuss eight recent patients, six of whom presented in the last 20 years, that conform to the diagnosis of encephalitis lethargica. The clinical features by which the diagnosis may be made are defined so that a contemporary definition of this disorder may be attained.

Adult↗