About 10 to 20 percent of people with Parkinson’s disease experience symptoms before age 50, which is called “young onset.” While treatments are the same, younger people may experience the disease differently. Scientists are working to understand the causes behind young-onset Parkinson’s.
People with young-onset Parkinson’s disease (YOPD) may have a longer journey to diagnosis, sometimes seeing multiple doctors and undergoing several tests before reaching a correct conclusion. For many, palliative care through Paradigm Health may be a needed support system in caring for early onset Parkinson’s.
Read more about early-onset Parkinson’s disease courtesy of the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.
Parkinson’s Disease Patients and Care Partners Search for Improved Quality of Life
Courtesy of the American Parkinson Disease Association:
People with Parkinson’s disease (PD) and their care partners are always searching for ways to make their lives easier, healthier and fuller. Using the principles of palliative care to enhance Parkinson’s Disease (PD)-specific care is one way to do that.
Palliative care is a medical approach for those with complex illnesses, in which the focus is on maximizing quality of life. This approach can be applied at any stage of the disease, even at the time of diagnosis. Many people with PD have experienced this type of approach from their physicians, often to a limited degree, when a treatment or therapy is added to improve quality of life. However, these small steps are often not enough and a change in the practice of PD medicine is slowly underway, with the goal of providing comprehensive and consistent palliative care throughout the disease course.
Palliative care for PD typically requires a multi-disciplinary approach — like Paradigm Health’s community-based approach to palliative care — in which movement disorders physicians, nurses, social workers, physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech therapists work together to optimize quality of life.
Read more about Parkinson’s disease courtesy of the American Parkinson’s Disease Association. :
If you or a loved one has recently been diagnosed with Parkinson, Paradigm Health’s nationally accredited palliative care program can be of support and guidance for care wherever you call home. Call 317-735-6001 or visit our Palliative Care page.
