Acetylcholine: a compound released from the ends of nerve fibers in the brain involved in the transmission of nerve impulses.
Alzheimer's Disease: progressive and fatal brain disease which destroys cells, causing memory, behavior, and thinking behavior problems severe enough to affect work, social interaction and all aspects of a person's life.
Anxiety: a feeling of nervousness, and apprehension.
Apraxia: the inability to make a voluntary movement in spite of being able to demonstrate normal muscle function.
Autonomic Nervous System: the part of the nervous system that supplies nerve endings in the blood vessels, heart, intestines, glands, and smooth muscles. It also governs involuntary functioning such as heart rate and breathing.
Bradykinesia: slowness of movement.
Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD): a sporadic progressive neurodegenerative disease associated with atrophy of the cerebral cortex and the basal ganglia.
Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS): a form of surgical therapy for the treatment of Parkinson's disease and essential tremor. Involves placing a metal wire into a specific site in the brain and stimulating the site with electrical impulses.
Delusion: false, fixed, idiosyncratic belief, not substantiated by sensory or objective evidence.
Dementia: broad complex of symptoms such as disorientation, confusion, memory loss, impaired judgment, and alterations in mood and personality.
Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB): one of the most common types of progressive dementia.
Depression: a mental condition marked by ongoing feelings of sadness, despair, loss of energy or interest, and difficulty dealing with normal daily life.
Dopaminomimetics: a class of medication used to increase the level of dopamine in the brain.
Dyskinesia: distortion of voluntary movements with involuntary muscular activity which include jerking, fidgeting, twisting, and turning movements (frequently induced by medications taken by Parkinson's patients).
Dysphagia: difficulty in swallowing.
Dystonia: abnormal, prolonged, and repetitive muscle contractions that may cause twisting or jerking.
Essential tremor: sometimes called benign or familial tremor, usually includes shaking of the hands or head, and an unsteady quality of the voice (more common than Parkinson's disease).
Forgetfulness and confusion: lack of clear and orderly thought and behavior.
Freezing: temporary, involuntary inability to take a step or initiate movement.
Hallucinations: deceptions or tricks played by the brain that involve the body's senses (seeing, hearing, tasting, feeling and smelling).
Hypersexuality: increased need or compulsion for sexual gratification which may include decreased inhibitions and a need for "forbidden" sex or sexual experiences that would normally not be considered.
Hypomimia: decreased facial expression due to rigidity of facial muscles.
Hypophonia: disturbance in speech which is characterized by the voice softening and/or lowering in volume. Deterioration in the rhythm and quality of the voice is also common.
Hypotension: low blood pressure.
Idiopathic Parkinson's Disease: Parkinson's disease arising from an unknown cause.
Levodopa (L-dopa, Sinemet): medication most commonly used in the treatment of Parkinson's symptoms.
Lewy Body Disease: neurological disease in which abnormal structures called Lewy bodies are found in certain areas of the brain. Symptoms can be similar to Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. (see Dementia with Lewy Bodies).
Livido Reticularis: purplish or bluish mottling of the skin caused by certain medications taken by Parkinson's patients.
Loss of impulse control: disorder in which a person acts on a certain impulse, which may be potentially harmful, but cannot be resisted.
Medication-Induced Parkinsonism: Parkinson's-like symptoms caused by some common medications (also referred to as Drug-Induced Parkinsonism).
Micrographia: small, cramped handwriting.
Multiple System Atrophy (MSA): disease with symptoms similar to Parkinson's including bradykinesia, poor balance, abnormal autonomic function, rigidity, difficulty with coordination, impotence, low blood pressure upon standing, excessive or reduced sweating, and constipation.
Neurodegenerative: type of neurological disease marked by the loss of nerve cells.
Neuroleptics: medications with an antipsychotic effect that are used in the treatment of schizophrenia and other serious mental illnesses; also known as antipsychotics.
Neurologist: medical doctor who is specially trained to diagnose and treat disorders of the brain, spinal cord and nerves.
Neurology: science of the nerves and the nervous system, and of the diseases affecting them.
Neuron: cell that generates or conducts electrical impulses to carry information from one part of the brain to another.
Neurotransmitter: chemical (such as dopamine, acetylcholine, or norepinephrine) which transmits or relays information or signals across the junction separating one nerve cell (neuron) from another nerve cells or muscle cells.
Occupational Therapist: health professional trained to help people who are ill or disabled learn to manage their daily activities.
Olivopontocerebellar atrophy (OPCA): term that describes the degeneration of neurons in specific areas of the brain. OPCA is present in several neurodegenerative syndromes, including both inherited and non-inherited forms.
On-Off Phenomenon: sudden, unpredictable changes in motor performance by patients on levodopa therapy.
Orthostatic Hypotension: drop in blood pressure upon standing; can cause fainting.
Parkinsonism: name given to a group of disorders with features similar to Parkinson's disease including four primary symptoms: tremor, rigidity, postural instability, and bradykinesia (slowness of movement).
Physiotherapist: professional who treats physical disorders through manipulation, mobilization techniques and prescribing strengthening exercises and advice where appropriate.
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scan: nuclear medicine imaging procedure which provides scans of brain dopamine systems following (in the case of suspected Parkinson's) the injection of a radioactive analog of levodopa.
Postural tremor: rhythmic shaking of the hands with arms outstretched.
Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP): atypical Parkinsonian syndrome that involves limitations in eye movements, difficulty swallowing, severe balance and gait problems.
Prosody: qualities such as intonation, stress, rate, and rhythm which provide speech with its melodic character.
Psychiatrist: physician who is certified in treating mental disorders and who may prescribe medications, conduct physical examinations, and/or order medical tests as deemed necessary to make a diagnosis.
Psychologist: professional who is trained in the systematic investigation of the human mind, including behaviour, cognition and affect.
ReQuip: medication that may improve ability to move and decrease shakiness (tremor), stiffness, slowed movement, and unsteadiness; may also decrease the number of on-off episodes.
Resting Tremor: characteristic tremor that occurs as one of the primary symptoms of Parkinson's disease, typically present in arm, leg, lips, chin or tongue; occurs or exacerbates when at rest and decreases with active movements.
Restless Leg Syndrome: disorder in which a burning, tingling or tugging feeling occurs in the legs while at rest, primarily at night, and causes an irresistible urge to move the legs.
Rigidity: stiffness and increased resistance to passive movements.
Shy-Drager Disease: form of multiple system atrophy characterized by Parkinson symptoms and autonomic abnormalities.
Sinemet: a brand name medication of L-dopa that may be given to help relieve the muscle stiffness, tremor, and weakness caused by Parkinson's disease.
Sleep Apnea: temporary cessation of breathing during sleep; may occur repeatedly, resulting in a poor night's sleep and daytime drowsiness and typically, the sufferer will awaken gasping for breath.
Social Worker: professional trained to talk with people and their families about emotional or physical needs, and to find them support services.
Speech-Language Pathologist: specialist trained in language and communication disorders.
Striatonigral Degeneration (SND): refers to a form of multiple system atrophy involving the loss of connections between two areas of the brain, the striatum and the substantia nigra, which work together to ensure smooth movement and maintain balance.
Vascular Parkinsonism: disorder caused by multiple small strokes which is more likely to show gait, rather than tremor symptoms and is worse in the lower limbs rather than the upper limbs.
Wearing-off Phenomena: waning of the effects of a dose of levodopa prior to the scheduled time for the next dose, resulting in decreased motor performance .
