There is increasing interest in the Parkinson's patient and research community about the potential for cannabis-based products to treat PD. In this expert briefing we will review what cannabis is, how it works in the brain and why there is so much excitement about its potential in PD. We will then review animal and basic science studies suggesting some promise in treating motor symptoms and slowing the progression of PD. We will conclude by reviewing the evidence to date in human studies, suggestions for future research and practical advice for persons interested in trying cannabis-based products.

At the end of this presentation, participants will:

1. Define cannabis, cannabinoids and endocannabinoids
2. Review the basic science of the potential of cannabinoids to affect Parkinson's and other movement disorders
3. Understand the current state of the evidence of cannabinoids as a treatment for Parkinson's
4. Know the most common side effects of cannabinoid-based therapies

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Presenter

Benzi M. Kluger, M.D., M.S
Associate Professor
University of Colorado Hospital

Medication options for Parkinson’s disease (PD) are constantly evolving and vary for each individual. Choosing medications depends on many variables; including motor fluctuations, symptom variability and other existing health issues. In this webinar, Dr. Rajesh Pahwa shares new treatment options to be on the lookout for within the next two years and explains who would be the best candidates for these new therapies available.

Presenter

Rajesh Pahwa, MD
Laverne and Joyce Rider Professor of Neurology
Chief, Parkinson and Movement Disorder Division
Director, Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence
University of Kansas Medical Center

As most people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) and their care partners know, medication management is crucial for controlling PD symptoms. Given that many people need to take medication multiple times a day, “on time every time” becomes a way of life, regardless of where one is – at home, at work, visiting with friends, shopping, or traveling. Ironically, one of the most difficult places to get medications on your individual schedule is in the hospital. Hospitals have set times to dispense medications, so a hospitalized person with Parkinson’s or their care partner needs to impress upon the staff that Parkinson’s medicines have to be given on the patient’s schedule, not the hospital’s.

Rose Lang’s husband, John, fell and broke his hip, resulting in his transport to a local hospital and several hours in the emergency department. Fortunately, he brought some of his pills with him and took them while waiting to be admitted to a room in the hospital. But even then, Rose, a retired pharmacist, had to educate the medical and nursing staff about the need for John’s “pills on time, every time.” She is also a Parkinson’s Foundation Ambassador, so John arrived at the hospital with his Aware in Care kit, and Rose made ample use of the resources within the kit to inform and educate the hospital staff caring for her husband.

The Parkinson’s Foundation Hospital Safety Guide is the updated and improved version of the former Aware in Care Hospital Safety kit, which you’ll hear referenced in this episode. The Guide has new, vital information, based on research and feedback, prioritizing what is most important — staying safe and empowered when hospitalized with Parkinson’s.

To learn more about the updated Hospital Safety Guide, or for information about becoming a hospital safety focused Parkinson’s Foundation Ambassador, visit Parkinson.org/HospitalSafety.

Released: June 29, 2021
Updated: July 9, 2024

Parkinson's disease (PD) is complicated by a number of comorbid psychiatric symptoms that often overlap with the motor and other physical aspects of PD or may be caused by PD medications used to treat motor symptoms (e.g., impulse control disorders and dopamine agonists). In this webinar, Dr. Marsh will focus on the overlap of motor, cognitive, and psychiatric aspects of PD. Additionally, she will describe the features of comorbid psychiatric disturbances, including depression, anxiety and psychosis along with general approaches to treatment.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this webinar, the participants will:

1. Understand the relationships between motor, cognitive and psychiatric dysfunction in PD over the course of the disease.
2. Understand the common psychiatric diagnoses seen in patients with PD.
3. Be familiar with appropriate treatments for neuropsychiatric disturbances in PD.

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Presenter

Laura Marsh, MD
Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine
Director, Mental Health Care Line
Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center

In this webinar, Dr. Pfeiffer will focus on the detection and effective treatment of non-motor symptoms other than traditional PD medications. He will address how non-motor symptoms, such as impaired sense of smell, sleep behavior changes, constipation and depression may be present years before the classic motor features of PD appear. You will take away specific recommendations on how to cope and live optimally with these non-motor symptoms.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this webinar, the participants will:

1. Recognize that non-motor symptoms, such as impaired olfaction, REM sleep behavior disorder, pain, constipation and depression may be present years before the classic motor features of PD appear.
2. Understand that non-motor features frequently become the most troublesome features of PD as it advances.
3. Be aware that treatment other than traditional PD medications may be needed for non-motor features of PD.

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Presenter

Ronald Pfeiffer, MD
Oregon Health and Sciences University
OHSU Parkinson Center
Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence

Medication is a mainstay of treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD), and can vary for each person with PD. Each medication has its own properties, and healthcare professionals have reasons to choose certain ones at various times as conditions warrant. At those times, people with PD and their care partners need to ask questions about the reasons for starting specific medications, what they can expect, and whether they will interact well with other medications. This advice applies to all medications, not just ones for PD. All healthcare providers need to be aware that someone has PD and what medications they are taking because not only can they interact with other medications, but they may also affect what procedures can be performed and when.

Emily Peron, PharmD, of Virginia Commonwealth University School of Pharmacy in Richmond discusses these issues and more, with advice about medications, their effects and adverse effects, and medication changes.

Released: February 25, 2020
Updated: July 9, 2024

It is estimated that about one in six people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) taking dopaminergic medication will develop an impulse control disorder (ICD) sometime during the course of their disease. Such impulsive behaviors may include uncontrolled gambling, eating, shopping, sexual activity, or punding, a purposeless activity in which a person repetitively organizes, sorts, or collects items. ICD’s are more likely to occur in older people on dopamine agonists than in younger people. Some forms of ICD can have devastating outcomes personally or within the family. Fortunately, these adverse effects of the drugs can often be managed well, especially if they are caught early, and in this regard, the family and care partners are key to recognizing and discussing them with the person with PD and the neurologist.

In this podcast, Dr. Gregory Pontone, Director of the Parkinson’s Neuropsychiatry Clinic at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, a Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence, discusses forms of ICD’s, some means to recognize them, and tools for communicating about them.

Released: February 9, 2021

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Among the treatments for Parkinson’s disease (PD), the most common are medications, which can work well up to a point. But when motor symptoms are not adequately controlled with drugs, deep brain stimulation (DBS) may be an option. Using electrodes placed in the brain, an implantable pulse generator (IPG) placed in the chest or abdomen, and a wire that connects the two, this system targets electrical currents to precise structures within the brain to block the abnormal nerve signals that cause tremor and other motor symptoms.

Originally approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1997 to treat PD tremor, DBS approval was extended to treating advanced PD symptoms in 2002, and in 2016, to earlier stages of the disease when drugs wear off too quickly or other motor symptoms such as tremor, rigidity, stiffness, or slowness of movement become disabling. However, DBS is not a cure for PD, does not prevent its progression, and is, in fact, brain surgery. In this podcast, Dr. Nader Pouratian, Professor of Neurosurgery and director of the Neurosurgical Movement Disorders Program at the University of California, Los Angeles, discusses how DBS works, what benefits it can and cannot provide, who may be good candidates for it, possible complications, and what’s ahead.

Released: January 14, 2020

Even after years of managing Parkinson’s disease (PD), symptoms may become more challenging to control. Parkinson's Foundation Chief Scientific Officer James Beck, PhD, walks us through how symptoms may change over time and when surgical therapies, such as deep brain stimulation (DBS), may become a better option for those living with Parkinson’s.

Since the early 2000’s, centers of excellence for various diseases or procedures have become common. These are specialized programs within healthcare institutions that bring together experts and resources to target different aspects of the disease or condition to give patients a unified resource for addressing their needs in a comprehensive manner. Besides optimizing resources for patients, the centers of excellence provide advantages for healthcare providers by integrating experts and resources to draw upon within one organization.

Much work goes into assembling and being designated a Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence. At this point, the Parkinson’s Foundation has recognized 47 CoE’s – 34 in the United States and 14 international. Not only do they have to have clinical expertise, but part of their mandate is to do research, education, and community outreach to underserved communities that otherwise could not access the CoE or find appropriate care within their own locales.

In this episode Clarissa Martinez-Rubio, Senior Director of Clinical Affairs of the Parkinson’s Foundation, describes what these centers are and the criteria for earning a designation as a CoE. Then Joe Salvatore talks about his mother’s experience getting a second opinion at a Parkinson’s Foundation CoE and how it helped change the course of her disease.

Released: December 3, 2019