Neurology
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Correspondence:
Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when Correspondence are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Quattrone, A.
Right arrow Articles by Zappia, M.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Quattrone, A.
Right arrow Articles by Zappia, M.
NEUROLOGY 1993;43:1161
© 1993 American Academy of Neurology

Oral pulse levodopa therapy in mild Parkinson's disease

Aldo Quattrone, MD and Mario Zappia, MD

Institute of Neurological Sciences, Catanzaro Faculty of Medicine, University of Reggio Calabria, Catanzaro, Italy.

Article abstract-Chronic levodopa administration in Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with long-term motor side effects. To reduce the cumulative amount of levodopa intake by patients with mild PD, we investigated the clinical efficacy of short periods of treatment with levodopa scheduled at different daily dosages and administered in a conventional design (ie, three times a day) compared with a standard oral dose of the drug administered once every 3 days. The latter dose regimen, designated "oral pulse levodopa therapy" (OPLT), allowed us to obtain a clinical response comparable to that obtained by conventional treatments that involve cumulative daily levodopa dosages up to seven times higher than OPLT. The clinical efficacy of OPLT could be related to the preservation of compensatory mechanisms in Parkinson's disease that are masked by conventional intermittent replacement therapy.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Aldo Quattrone, Institute of Neurological Sciences, Policlinico "Mater Domini," Via T. Campanella, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy.

Received May 6, 1992. Accepted for publication in final form October 6, 1992.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 NeurologyHome page
P. Temperli, J. Ghika, J.-G. Villemure, P.R. Burkhard, J. Bogousslavsky, and F.J.G. Vingerhoets
How do parkinsonian signs return after discontinuation of subthalamic DBS?
Neurology, January 14, 2003; 60(1): 78 - 81.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 BrainHome page
E. Moro, R. J. A. Esselink, A. L. Benabid, and P. Pollak
Response to levodopa in parkinsonian patients with bilateral subthalamic nucleus stimulation
Brain, November 1, 2002; 125(11): 2408 - 2417.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 NeurologyHome page
M. Zappia, D. Bosco, M. Plastino, G. Nicoletti, D. Branca, R. L. Oliveri, U. Aguglia, A. Gambardella, and A. Quattrone
Pharmacodynamics of the long-duration response to levodopa in PD
Neurology, August 1, 1999; 53(3): 557 - 557.
[Abstract] [Full Text]

Home page
 NeurologyHome page
M. Zappia, R. L. Oliveri, R. Montesanti, M. Rizzo, D. Bosco, M. Plastino, L. Crescibene, L. Bastone, U. Aguglia, A. Gambardella, et al.
Loss of long-duration response to levodopa over time in PD: Implications for wearing-off
Neurology, March 1, 1999; 52(4): 763 - 763.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1993 by AAN Enterprises, Inc.