OBJECTIVES Transdermal delivery of rotigotine maintains stable plasma concentrations for 24 hours. Three phase 3 studies of rotigotine as add-on to levodopa in advanced Parkinson's disease showed a significant reduction in "off" time from baseline to end of maintenance (EoM). However, detailed analyses over the range of a day have not yet been performed. The objective was to examine the time co...

BACKGROUND Plantago ovata husk therapy could be used in patients with Parkinson disease to reduce the symptoms of gastrointestinal disorders, but it is important to know whether this compound modifies levodopa pharmacokinetics. The maintenance of constant plasma concentrations of levodopa abolishes the clinical fluctuations in parkinsonian patients. The aim of this randomised clinical trial was...

Brain activity during rest is characterized by slow (0.01–0.1 Hz) fluctuations of blood oxygenation level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging signals. These fluctuations are organized as functional connectivity networks called resting-state networks, anatomically corresponding to specific neuronal circuits. As Parkinson’s disease is mainly characterized by a dysfunction of the senso...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Dopamine agonists (DAs) are generally considered to be deprived of the highly dyskinetic effect of levodopa in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. However, the risk for dyskinesia induced by DA monotherapy and the contribution of clinically significant factors in the development of this disorder have never been systematically assessed. METHODS A systematic literature sea...

BACKGROUND In patients with motor fluctuations complicating Parkinson's disease (PD), delays in time-to-ON with levodopa are common. This open-label study aimed to assess the effect of apomorphine on time-to-ON in PD patients with morning akinesia. METHODS The safety population included 127 enrolled patients, and the full analysis set (FAS) included 88 patients. Patients completed a 7-day lev...

Tiapride, a substituted benzamide derivative closely related to metoclopramide, reduced levodopa-induced peak dose involuntary movements in 16 patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease. However, an unacceptable increase in disability from Parkinsonism with aggravation of end-of-dose akinesia led to its cessation in 14 patients. Tiapride had no effect on levodopa-induced early morning of "off...

A family with a dominant form of partial GTP cyclohydrolase deficiency is described. Clinical severity varied from mild involvement with complete responsiveness to levodopa to severe dystonia precluding any voluntary activity including talking, progressive contractures, and only partial responsiveness to levodopa. Although there are several possible reasons for intrafamilial variability, any pa...

epilepsy is a common neurologic disorder affecting approximately 1% of the population. the prevalence of active epilepsy in kerman,iran is 7.87/1000 individuals. the past decade has brought many advances to the treatment of epilepsy, including many new pharmacological agents. lamotrigine is one of the new antiepileptic drugs. lamotrigine has many side effects; the most important of which are al...

OBJECTIVE To compile a comprehensive summary of published human experience with levodopa given intravenously, with a focus on information required by regulatory agencies. BACKGROUND While safe intravenous (IV) use of levodopa has been documented for over 50 years, regulatory supervision for pharmaceuticals given by a route other than that approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA...

OBJECTIVE Dopamine (DA) is critical for motor performance, motor learning, and corticostriatal plasticity. The relationship between motor performance and learning, and the role of DA in the mediation of them, however, remain unclear. METHODS To examine this question, we took advantage of PITx3-deficient mice (aphakia mice), in which DA in the dorsal striatum is reduced by 90%. PITx3-deficient...