Parkinson disease is an age-related degeneration of certain nerve systems which results in disordered movement, balance, and muscle control.

Medical management of Parkinson disease is currently focused on controlling the symptoms of the disease and minimizing disability, but there is still a need for therapy that can effectively slow disease progression. In the September 24, 2009 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, scientists report that early treatment with a drug called rasagiline may help to slow the progression of Parkinson disease.

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and their colleagues recruited a total of 1176 patients with untreated Parkinson disease in order to examine the possibility that rasagiline might have a disease-modifying effect. Study participants were randomly assigned to receive rasagiline at a dose of either 1 milligram or 2 milligrams per day for 72 weeks or placebo for 36 weeks followed by either dose of rasagiline for 36 weeks. The researchers found that the Parkinson disease patients who received rasagiline at a dose of 1 milligram per day for the full 72 weeks exhibited less worsening of their disease than the other study patients. However, these findings were not replicated among those Parkinson disease patients who received the 2-milligram dose for 72 weeks.

Parkinson disease is one of the most common movement disorders, affecting one percent of people over the age of 60 years. Based on the findings of this study, a 1-miligram dose of rasagiline might be effective in slowing down the progression of Parkinson disease, but the study authors caution that their results should be interpreted with caution as early treatment with rasagiline at a dose of 2 milligrams did not demonstrate the same benefit.

Source:

NEJM. 2009;361:1268-1278.