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Parkinson's   Information pages   About this page ... Welcome to MERCYs web pages dedicated to information on Parkinson's and Medical Cannabis as well as related issues and items.   Click here for printable (WORD) version of this info, Click here for PDF (Adobe) version of this info. These are Orgs, Info, Links and other Resources for Medical Cannabis and/or Parkinson's Disease. Services and functional information you can use.   Sections for The Law; Contacts - People, Orgs and Biz; Events and other Network opportunities; Info - Medical, Legal and otherwise; Action - Indiviual and Group Plans and Resources, Legislation and Legislators at all levels, News - Current Items by Categories, Sources and History; Library of Links, Images and Documents including How To's and any other Resources (IE- Forums) that may help. Medical cannabis resources and more.  We also try to include basic cannabis and related law and policy reform links and orgs for associated areas and functions such as human rights, justice, environment, health and other issues that potentially share resources.   What's yours? Got a Link, Resource or an Idea?  Enter in the NotePad or send us FeedBack. See even more related Info at this web-ring: OpdxNwoL links (marijuanalibrary.org/links.html)   Information on Parkinsons   Definition.   Parkinson disease is a slowly progressive neurologic disease characterized by a fixed inexpressive face, a tremor at rest, slowing of voluntary movements, a gait with short accelerating steps, peculiar posture and muscle weakness, caused by degeneration of an area of the brain called the basal ganglia, and by low production of the neurotransmitter dopamine. Most patients are over 50, but at least 10 percent are under 40. Also known as paralysis agitans and shaking palsy. Treatment is by medication, such as levodopa (Larodopa) and carbidopa (Sinemet). A surgically implanted device that helps control the shaking has recently become available. In some cases, surgery on the globus pallidus or thalamus has proved helpful. From a genetic viewpoint it is now clear that Parkinson disease is heterogeneous. It is not one, but a number of diseases. Genes appear to be involved in all forms of Parkinson disease. Source: http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=4783 more: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive movement disorder marked by tremors, rigidity, slow movements (bradykinesia), and posture instability. It occurs when cells in one of the movement-control centers of the brain begin to die for unknown reasons. PD was first noted by British physician James Parkinson in the early 1800s. Description: Usually beginning in a person's late fifties or early sixties, Parkinson disease causes a progressive decline in movement control, affecting the ability to control initiation, speed, and smoothness of motion. Symptoms of PD are seen in up to 15% of those ages 65–74, and almost 30% of those ages 75–84. Causes and symptoms.   In the vast majority of cases, the cause of PD is un-known. Besides old age, there are several well-recognized risk factors. These include exposure to pesticides or herbicides, rural living, and drinking well water. Because of this, it is assumed that some type of environmental pollutant, either a pesticide or something associated with its use, is involved in causing PD. Other known risk factors include welding and exposure to manganese, further strengthening the case for an environmental toxin. The earliest symptoms of PD, and the most widely recognized, are tremor, slowed movements (bradykinesia), and stiffness or rigidity. Symptoms often begin on one side of the body, and progress over time to involve both sides. The tremor of PD is a rest tremor—the shaking occurs when the patient is not trying to use the limb, and diminishes when the limb is in use. Bradykinesia and stiffness, along with loss of some balance reflexes, can combine to cause postural instability, and increase the likelihood of falling down. Diagnosis.   Parkinson's disease is diagnosed by a careful neurological examination, testing movements, coordination, reflexes, and other aspects of function. If the physician suspects PD, the patient will usually be referred to a neurologist for definitive diagnosis. Unilateral (one-sided) tremor, slowed movements, and muscle stiffness are generally enough to confirm the diagnosis; two of the three are usually considered definitive. Several specialized tests may be used, including imaging of the brain with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or positron emission tomography (PET). These are not essential to diagnosis in most cases, but may help to confirm the diagnosis in difficult cases and to distinguish PD from similar diseases such as progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal degeneration, or multiple system atrophy. Clues that the disease is one of these, rather than PD, include early or rapidly progressing dementia, loss of coordination, or early and prominent orthostatic hypotension (lightheadedness upon standing). Certain medications can cause a PD-like syndrome, and it is important to rule these out. These drugs include certain antipsychotic medications (haloperidol) and antivomiting drugs (metoclopramide). Complications of advanced disease.   After several years of successful treatment, most patients begin to develop one or more motor complications. These often begin with "wearing off," a reduction in the duration of effect of a given dose of levodopa, which initially can be countered by dosing more frequently. Another complication is "on-off," in which the symptomatic benefit of a given dose suddenly switches off and the patient becomes rigid, with tremor and slowed movements emerging. When this occurs at home, the patient will typically just take another dose of medication, and wait for it to begin to work. It is more of a problem when it occurs while the patient is out and about, and frequent on-off episodes may make the patient reluctant to leave the home. Treatment.   There are no treatments that have been proven to slow the course of PD, although research published in 2003 suggested that coenzyme Q10 may offer a slight benefit in this regard. The study has not been replicated, and its authors noted it would be premature to recommend treatment with this very expensive supplement. Additional claims have been made that two medications used to treat PD symptoms—selegiline and dopamine agonists—may have some disease-slowing effects. These claims are not widely accepted. Expectations (prognosis).   PD is a progressive disease, and the loss of brain tissue in the SN is inevitable. PD patients tend to live almost as long as age-matched individuals without PD, although with an increasing level of disability. Loss of motor control can lead to an increased risk for falls, and swallowing difficulty can cause choking or aspiration (inhaling) of food. Aspiration pneumonia is a common cause of death in late-stage PD patients. Source: http://www.answers.com/topic/parkinson-s-disease

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( skip to End )  |   ( next )  |   more Info ...    |     ( prev )  |   ( go to Top )    Info on Parkinsons and Medical Cannabis  Parkinson's disease patients who have tried marijuana say the drug helped relieve their symptoms; Nearly half of Parkinson's disease patients who have tried marijuana say the drug helped relieve their symptoms, according to a survey of patients with the degenerative neurological disorder. | Dr. Evzin Ruzicka, an attending neurologist at Charles University in Prague in the Czech Republic, reported the findings here at the Movement Disorders Society's Seventh International Congress of Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders. Ruzicka is also a consultant at the Prague Movement Disorders Center. "It's difficult to directly study the medical effects of cannabis in the Czech Republic, where we conducted our research, because of its illegal status," Ruzicka told Reuters Health. "Therefore, we had to conduct anonymous surveys. To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess the effect of cannabis on Parkinson's disease, and our findings suggest it may alleviate some symptoms." Ruzicka and his colleagues chose to investigate marijuana's effects on Parkinson's disease after hearing from several patients that they had tried the drug and it had helped them. The investigators asked all patients who were treated for Parkinson's disease at their center to complete a questionnaire that asked about cannabis use and about several Parkinson's disease symptoms, including overall symptoms; tremor while at rest; bradykinesia, or slow movement; muscle rigidity; and dyskinesias, or involuntary movements. Dyskinesias are caused by levodopa, the mainstay medication in Parkinson's treatment. ... visit: http://www.onlinepot.org/medical/parkinsons.htm Movement disorders and medical marijuana ... Parkinson's disease has been linked to dysfunction in the body's dopamine system, specifically the production ... Movement disorders and medical marijuana Read how cannabis compares to other movement disorder medications Survivors' Testimonials Doctors' Experiences ... Research Legal citations supporting movement disorder data found on this site Research citations supporting movement disorder data found on this site Movement disorders and neuro-degenerative diseases, which are sometimes interlinked, are among the conditions cannabis is particularly well suited to treat. The therapeutic use of cannabis for treating muscle problems and movement disorders has been known to western medicine for nearly two centuries. In 1839, Dr. William B. O'Shaughnessy wrote of the plant's muscle relaxant and anti-convulsant properties, that doctors had "gained an anti-convulsive remedy of the greatest value."12 In 1890 Dr. J. Russell Reynolds, physician to Queen Victoria, noted in an article in The Lancet that for "organic disease of a gross character in the nervous centers . . . India hemp (cannabis) is the most useful agent with which I am acquainted."13 Muscular spasticity is a common condition, affecting millions of people in the United States. Cannabis also has enormous potential for protecting the brain and central nervous system from the damage that creates various movement disorders. ... More than 100 research articles have been published on how cannabinoids act as neuroprotective agents to slow the progression of such neurodegenerative diseases as Huntington's, Alzheimer's and particularly Parkinson's, which affects more than 52% of people over the age of 85. ... visit: http://www.medical-marijuana-testimonials.org/Movement-disorders-and-medical-marijuana.htm Medical Marijuana Information Links | Survey on Cannabis Use in Parkinson's Disease. Cannabis Holds Subjective Benefits ... of doctors who recommend medical marijuana to sick patients. ... Cannabis News Highlights Breaking News from Cannabis News Medical Cannabis Drug Testing Comments Medical Marijuana Cannabis & Drug Policy Links Granny Storm Crow's List- 2009 ... Survey on Cannabis Use in Parkinson's Disease Cannabis Holds Subjective Benefits For Parkinson's Disease, Study Says September 23, 2004 - Prague, Czech Republic ... visit: http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/medical.htm Parkinson's « Patients for Medical Cannabis - Sep 22, 2009 | Cannabis/Marijuana: A Parkinson’s Cure This is a pretty raw video, but we think it shows better than any scientific article the powerful healing nature of Cannabis. How can you beat a medicine that can be grown and prepared at virtually no cost, that not only has no side effects, but instead leaves you happy? In this video, a man suffering from Parkinson’s takes a puff of Cannabis at about 2 minutes. By 6 minutes into the video, he is no longer shaking, but laughing! They also speak of *hemp oil, which is the most potent form of medical marijuana. ... People with Parkinsons and other neurological disorders ... visit: http://patients4medicalmarijuana.wordpress.com/category/parkinsons/ Medicinal Uses of Marijuana: Movement Disorders | Excerpts on movement disorders from Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. Joy, Janet E.; Stanley J. Watson, Jr.; John A. Benson, Jr., Eds. Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. Washington, DC: Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Health, Institute of Medicine. 1999. 259 p.: Movement Disorders - Movement disorders are a group of neurological conditions caused by abnormalities in the basal ganglia and their subcortical connections through the thalamus with cortical motor areas. The abundance of CB1 receptors in basal ganglia and reports of animal studies showing the involvement of cannabinoids in the control of movement suggest that cannabinoids would be useful in treating movement disorders in humans. The movement disorders most often considered for marijuana or cannabinoid therapy are dystonia, Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease, and Tourette's syndrome. Movement disorders are often transiently exacerbated by stress and activity and improved by factors that reduce stress. This is of particular interest because for many people marijuana reduces anxiety. ... Los Angeles City Council Poised to Regulate Medical Marijuana Dispensaries .... trial of marijuana involving five cases of idiopathic Parkinson's disease. ... visit: http://www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/medical/challenges/litigators/medical/conditions/movement.cfm Medical marijuana (cannabis) - Common Medical Uses for Cannabis (Marijuana) | Facts re medical marijuana (Cannabis) as medicine, laws for medicinal marijuana, patient ... Neuroprotective effect of cannabinoids in Parkinson's disease ... Physicians, Cannabis Cooperatives and Dispensaries Medical Marijuana Dispensaries - Directory of Medical Marijuana Dispensaries ... Neuroprotective effect of cannabinoids in Parkinson's disease ... visit: http://www.pacifier.com/~alive/index_se_cmu.htm   Organizations, Contacts and other Resources   Cannabis College - About Cannabis | Information regarding safe medical consumption of Cannabis (vaporising, tea or ... cases whereby Cannabis might prove effective: Parkinson's, chronic fatigue/ME, ... One of the most important aspects of the Cannabis College is our effort to provide the public with the most accurate and up-to-date medical information as possible. Whether this means offering international directories of medical activist groups or healthcare professionals for potential patients or simply offering links to scientific research, we attempt to help as many people as possible. Medical use of Cannabis is very different than recreational; the consumer must not achieve an intoxicated state or what is classified as a “medical overdose” is reached. Therapy is much more subtle than recreation and needs to be thoroughly researched. Do not self medicate, as certain combinations of cannabinoids may actually increase your symptoms (for example, high THC varieties such as Sativas will keep an insomniac awake, whereas the CBD and CBN in Indica plants may help you sleep.) Information regarding safe medical consumption of Cannabis (vaporising, tea or space cakes) is available within this section of our site. ... The Cannabis College attempts to provide as much information as possible regarding relief for ... Parkinson’s, ... visit: http://www.cannabiscollege.com/medicalcannabis.html Medical Cannabis Institute | The Medical Cannabis Industry has grown enormously over the past 5 years ... The Medical Cannabis Institute was organized to provide quality information, training and education to Medical Students, Patients and Caregivers. Medical Cannabis has been successfully used to treat and/or manage the following ailments: Cancer - ... - Parkinson's Disease - ... visit: http://www.medicalcannabisinstitute.com/ Medical Marijuana Doctors | THCF Medical Clinics. Cannabis Common Sense. THCF Clinic Schedule ... Nausea | Neuropathy | Parkinson's Disease. Community Resources ... THCF Medical Clinics physicians help qualified patients obtain a state permit to legally possess, use and grow medical marijuana. The Hemp & Cannabis Foundation is working to end adult marijuana prohibition, restore industrial hemp and help medical marijuana patients. ... Parkinson's Disease ... visit: http://www.medicalmarijuanadoctors.org/ HempPharm.com (tm) ! Medicinal Cannabis ... Arseus To Distribute Medical Cannabis In Germany ... Brain 'Cannabis' Parkinson's Hope. What Have California Doctors Learned About Cannabis? ... Ask your doctor if Medicinal Marijuana is right for you! Marijuana is a God given herb 0 deaths in 10,000 Years "Marijuana is one of the oldest and safest medicines known to man" US Institute of Medicine Report 1999 ... Marijuana Stops Mad Cow Alzheimers' and Parkinson Diseases ... Brain 'Cannabis' Parkinson's Hope ... visit: http://hemppharm.com/ Colorado Medical Marijuana Blog - Access To Colorado Medical Marijuana Registry Difficult, But Not Impossible - Todd Davis - Wednesday, September 16, 2009 | The biggest barrier to gaining access to the Colorado medical marijuana registry is most likely to be cost. Because there are no general funds allotted to the program, users are required to pay around $100 in fees to be a registered user. Also, all applications, renewals and requests for change must be submitted as a hard papery copy via mail, with changes made in blue ink and must include a copy of the patient’s Colorado identification. Not all applications will be accepted, however. Recently, four applications were denied due to lack of scientific evidence that medical marijuana usage provided any beneficial effect. Among those rejected were cases of Parkinson’s Disease, Asthma, Anxiety and Bi-Polar Disorder. Although acceptance is carefully screened, Colorado has currently used over 6,700 registry ID cards. The renewal rate is 56 percent. ... visit: http://www.coloradomedicalmarijuana.com/_blog/Colorado_Medical_Marijuana_Blog/tag/Asthma/   FORUMs Section  Parkinson's Disease | Medical Marijuana ... Nov 3, 2009 ... Our physicians help qualified patients obtain a state permit to legally possess, use and grow medical marijuana. Our clinics help patients ... Natural Marijuana' May Treat Brain Disorders Like Parkinson's Disease ... Parkinsons' Helped By Marijuana-Lke Chemicals In Brain ... visit: http://www.medicalmarijuanadoctors.org/forum/20 Other viable Forums, chat rooms and other such online resources   will be listed here as we learn about them.   NEWs Section  Parkinsons' Helped By Marijuana-Lke Chemicals In Brain Main Category: Parkinson's Disease Also Included In: Neurology / Neuroscience Article Date: 11 Feb 2007 | Marijuana-like chemicals in the brain may point to a treatment for the debilitating condition of Parkinson's disease. In a study published in Nature, researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine report that endocannabinoids, naturally occurring chemicals found in the brain that are similar to the active compounds in marijuana and hashish, helped trigger a dramatic improvement in mice with a condition similar to Parkinson's. "This study points to a potentially new kind of therapy for Parkinson's disease," said senior author Robert Malenka, MD, PhD, the Nancy Friend Pritzker Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. "Of course, it is a long, long way to go before this will be tested in humans, but nonetheless, we have identified a new way of potentially manipulating the circuits that are malfunctioning in this disease." Malenka and postdoctoral scholar Anatol Kreitzer, PhD, the study's lead author, combined a drug already used to treat Parkinson's disease with an experimental compound that can boost the level of endocannabinoids in the brain. When they used the combination in mice with a condition like Parkinson's, the mice went from being frozen in place to moving around freely in 15 minutes. "They were basically normal," Kreitzer said. But Kreitzer and Malenka cautioned that their findings don't mean smoking marijuana could be therapeutic for Parkinson's disease. "It turns out the receptors for cannabinoids are all over the brain, but they are not always activated by the naturally occurring endocannabinoids," said Malenka. The treatment used on the mice involves enhancing the activity of the chemicals where they occur naturally in the brain. "That is a really important difference, and it is why we think our manipulation of the chemicals is really different from smoking marijuana." The researchers began their study by focusing on a region of the brain known as the striatum. They were interested in that region because it has been implicated in a range of brain disorders, including Parkinson's, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder and addiction. ... visit: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/62616.php Czech Study: Marijuana May Ease Parkinson's Symptoms - Nov. 14, 2002 | Nearly half of Parkinson's disease patients who have tried marijuana say the drug helped relieve their symptoms, according to a survey of patients with the degenerative neurological disorder. Dr. Evzin Ruzicka, an attending neurologist at Charles University in Prague in the Czech Republic, reported the findings here at the Movement Disorders Society's Seventh International Congress of Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders. Ruzicka is also a consultant at the Prague Movement Disorders Center. "It's difficult to directly study the medical effects of cannabis in the Czech Republic, where we conducted our research, because of its illegal status," Ruzicka told Reuters Health. "Therefore, we had to conduct anonymous surveys. To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess the effect of cannabis on Parkinson's disease, and our findings suggest it may alleviate some symptoms." Ruzicka and his colleagues chose to investigate marijuana's effects on Parkinson's disease after hearing from several patients that they had tried the drug and it had helped them. ... visit: http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/11_14_02czechmj.cfm   Cannabis as Medicine  Medical cannabis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia | Medical cannabis (also referred to as medical marijuana) refers to the use of Cannabis (marijuana), including constituents of cannabis, THC and other cannabinoids, as a physician-recommended form of medicine or herbal therapy. Cannabis has a long history of medicinal use, with evidence dating back to 2,000 B.C.E.[1] Although the extent of the medicinal value of cannabis has been debated, it does have several well-documented beneficial effects.[2][3][4][5] Among these are: the amelioration of nausea and vomiting, stimulation of hunger in chemotherapy and AIDS patients, lowered intraocular eye pressure (shown to be effective for treating glaucoma), as well as general analgesic effects (pain reliever). Less confirmed individual studies also have been conducted indicating cannabis is beneficial in a variety of conditions including Multiple sclerosis and depression. Synthetic cannabinoids are also available as prescription drugs in many countries. Examples include Marinol, available in Germany and the United States, and Cesamet, available in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and also in the United States. There are several methods for administration of dosage, including vaporizing or smoking dried buds, drinking or eating extracts, and taking capsules.[6][7] The comparable efficacy of these methods was the subject of an investigative study [5] conducted by the National Institutes of Health. While cannabis for recreational use is illegal in most parts of the world, its use as a medicine is legal in a number of territories worldwide, including Canada, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Israel, Italy, Finland, and Portugal. In the United States, federal law outlaws all cannabis use, while permission for medical cannabis varies among states. Distribution is usually done within a framework defined by local laws. Medical cannabis remains a controversial issue worldwide. Other studies have shown cannabis or cannabinoids to be useful in treating ... Parkinson's disease ... visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_cannabis RxMarijuana.com | Marijuana: The Forbidden Medicine.   (ORG, inf, Book) Featured Medical Marijuana Patient Accounts * to share website visitors' medical marijuana histories to provide insight into uses for this medicine which are not widely known. … If you wish to send us a personal account of your medical marijuana experiences, ... Cannabis and Parkinsons by Michael McKenna ... visit: www.rxmarihuana.com/shared.htm Medical-101.com   (web-ring / link-list) * Your starting point for the best medical info. Free Medical Cannabis info Find what you're looking for! Visit: www.medical-101.com/s/medical_cannabis (back to top)

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