Research - Clinical Research - Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) can affect anyone. The average age of onset is around 55 - 60 years old, though it can appear at a much younger age. PD patients come from all walks of life:

Homemakers, farmers, teachers, doctors…
As well as some famous people:
Michael J. Fox - actor
Muhammad Ali – boxing champion
Janet Reno – former US Attorney General

The typical symptoms of PD at diagnosis are:

Tremor – rhythmic motions usually beginning in one hand
Rigidity – resistance to passive movement
Bradykinesia – slowness of voluntary movements

PD patients may also experience:

subtle changes in posture, shortened steps or shuffling, or “freezing” which is uncontrollable stops while walking
speech, voice, and swallowing issues
gastrointestinal issues such as nausea and constipation
sleep disorders
neuropsychiatric issues such as depression and/or anxiety

Prior to 1990 there were only a handful of therapies for the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease and the side effects that result from its primary treatment. Today there are almost three times as many - due in large part to the hard work of diligent and conscientious researchers. In just the last year alone three new pharmaceutical treatments have been approved by the FDA.

Atany given time, the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Program of The University of Toledo’s Department of Neurology has a number of ongoing and enrolling clinical trials for:

Patients newly diagnosed with Parkinsons disease who have not yet started standard therapy
Trials for “fluctuators” – those patients who experience periods of time when their PD medications are not working optimally
Patients who are experiencing side effects from their PD medications
Patients with siblings who are have been diagnosed with PD or are exhibiting signs of PD

For more information on any of our studies, or on the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Program as a whole, please contact:

Julia Spears, C.C.R.C., Research Administrator *419.383.6728 * julia.spears@utoledo.edu

Stephanie Wilson, R.N., M.S.N., C.C.R.C., Clinical Research Coordinator *419-383-6721* stephanie.wilson@utoledo.edu

Kristen Schuchmann, M.R.C., L.S.W., P.C.C. *419-383-6737* kristen.schuchmann@utoledo.edu