HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Correspondence: Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when Correspondence are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Weiner, W. J. Articles by Klawans, H. L. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Weiner, W. J. Articles by Klawans, H. L.

Drug holiday and management of Parkinson disease

From the Department of Neurological Sciences, Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center, Chicago, IL.

Chronic treatment of parkinsonism with levodopa or levodopa/carbidopa is associated with problems that include dyskinesia, on-off phenomena, hallucinosis, and possible loss of therapeutic efficacy. We studied the effects of a period of transient drug withdrawal (drug holiday) in 16 patients who manifested these complications of chronic levodopa therapy. Patients were evaluated daily before, during, and after the period of drug withdrawal. Eleven of the 16 patients exhibited enhanced motor responsiveness after the holiday and required only half of the initial daily dose for improved motor performance. Most levodopa-induced side effects decreased after the holiday. Hallucinosis was ameliorated in all cases. The frequency of on-off phenomena and myoclonus also diminished. Sensitivity to levodopa-induced dyskinesia was not affected by the drug holiday. Because most patients required lower dosage after the holiday, dyskinesias were no longer present. These observations suggest that parkinsonian patients who suffer complications of chronic levodopa therapy may benefit from a period of drug withdrawal.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Weiner, Department of Neurology, Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center, 1725 W. Harrison Street, Chicago, IL 60612.

Accepted for publication February 19, 1980.

This paper was presented in part at the thirty-first Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, Chicago, April 1979.

This work was supported in part by grants from the United Parkinson Foundation and the Boothroyd Foundation, Chicago, IL.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. Laowattana, B. Abou-Khalil, T. Fakhoury, and D. Ashmead Brief antiepileptic drug withdrawal prolongs interval to next seizure Neurology, November 1, 1999; 53(8): 1736 - 1736. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				E. Melamed Initiation of Levodopa Therapy in Parkinsonian Patients Should Be Delayed Until the Advanced Stages of the Disease Arch Neurol, April 1, 1986; 43(4): 402 - 405. [Abstract] [PDF]