Elderly care physician Professor Richard Walker advises on diagnosing and managing Parkinson's disease in older patients.
Learning objectives
This module will provide a primary care focused overview on Parkinson's disease in older people, including:
- Identifying symptoms to diagnose Parkinson's disease
- Prescribing levodopa and advising patients of potential long-term side effects
- Prescribing dopamine agonists and managing side-effects including daytime sleepiness
- Using catechyl-O-methyltransferase inhibitors in conjunction with levodopa
- Deciding which drug or combination of drugs to prescribe in individual patients
- Managing non-motor problems, such as such as sleep problems and swallowing problems
- Carrying out a delirium screen in patients with acute neuropsychiatric symptoms
Author
Professor Richard Walker is a consultant physician at the Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and honorary professor of ageing and international health at the Institute of Health and Society, Newcastle University
Article only | Full CPD module
