More to dopamine than meets the eye. Impaired dopamine production in the brain is at the heart of Parkinsons, and now that we've improved management of the physical symptoms of the disease, the cognitive symptoms are often the primary indicator that the disease is progressing, and the cue to increase pharmalogical interventions.
Like these rats, impaired reward-system behaviours can become real problems for people with Parkinsons - gambling binges are a huge issue for many sufferers. Managing the dopamine levels is now a core ingredient in managing Parkinsons.
And that's of interest only because the impact of reduced dopamine on cognition, mood and anxiety. These cogntive symptoms are increasingly found to be the leading cause of disability in people with Parkinsons above the comparatively well-managed physical symptoms, and treating declines in mood, anxiety and executive function by managing dopamine levels is what keeps a lot of these cognitive symptoms under control.
"Care factor" comes from the role of dopamine in our cognition, mood and anxiety, and the ability we now have to get those symptoms under control with dopamine-stimulating medication. People with Parkinsons get depression, anxiety, and reduced executive function, and it's treated with dopamine meds. Parkinsons medication is slowly making its way into the psychiatric field and showing some positive results. Don't underestimate dopamine!
