How close are we to having an earlier, more accurate diagnosis of Parkinsons?
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National Institutes of Health, is working on improving its guidelines for diagnosing Parkinson’s to reflect the latest science. Other researchers are focusing on finding new ways of identifying the disease altogether. Some are searching for a Parkinson’s biomarker — a biological trait displayed only in people who have or are at risk of developing the disease. And now that sense of smell has been tied to Parkinson’s, a study led by the Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders and the University of Pennsylvania is seeking to determine if how well a person performs on a test to identify 40 common odors can predict the individual’s likelihood of developing Parkinson’s. So far, they’ve found the average person can identify 35 of the odors, while the average diagnosed Parkinson’s patient can only correctly name 20.
