Factors That Influence Parkinson's Disease - Essay Example

"Factors That Influence Parkinson's Disease" is a decent example of a paper on neurology.
It is imperative for Registered Nurses to have a clear understanding or comprehension of the effects of various drugs in the human body, how these drugs react with various foods, and how specific drugs react in presence of other drugs. This is attributed to the fact that a lack of clear comprehension of these issues may lead to unnecessary loss of human life. This paper covers a brief description of a patient suffering from Parkinson's disease and how the age factor impacts this condition. Additionally, this paper discusses potential associated alterations and symptoms associated with Parkinson's disease. The pathophysiology of the associated alterations including changes in cellular function is also covered in this paper.

By definition, Parkinson's disease is a gradual neurological disease or illness that affects the way individuals talk, walk, and all the significant facets of their life. Age is one of the risk factors that leads to the development of Parkinson's disease according to Rana (2011). He states that "Risk of Parkinson's disease increases with age. The average age of onset for the disease is 55 years and the rate of the incidence increases steadily until the age of 90" (p. 5). Therefore, a depiction or a brief account of this condition would involve an individual unable to conduct his daily chores and obligations without assistance as a result of tremors and volatility or unsteadiness in terms of posture.

There are a number of symptoms and alterations that present themselves in an individual suffering from Parkinson's disease. Symptoms include slowness of movement, the inflexibility of the body, anxiety, depression, and speech is affected as well hence the affected individual communicates in a low and soft voice. As elucidate by Ciccone (2007), specific alterations occur in "Neurotransmitter balance in the basal ganglia" (p. 119). Neurotransmitters are chemical elements located in the brain whose main function is communication. Ciccone (2007) defines basal ganglia as "Groups of nuclei located in the brain that are involved in the coordination and regulation of motor function" (p. 119).

One of the nuclei of importance in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease is referred to as substantia nigra. The major alteration therefore in Parkinson's disease involves the erosion or disintegration of cells that manufacture dopamine, which is the neurotransmitter. It is worth noting that the levels of dopamine and acetylcholine, which are both transmitters, ought to be at equilibrium in the case of a healthy individual. In the case of Parkinson's disease, there is an imbalance between these two transmitters whereby dopamine level declines and acetylcholine level consequently rises. This decrease in dopamine level is closely linked with age as aging decreases naturally as the age of an individual progresses (Coccone, 2011).  

In conclusion, Parkinson's disease is a disease that affects the manners in which individuals communicate, their mobility, and also other important facets of daily life. Some of the symptoms of this disease, therefore, include reduced mobility, stiffness of the body hence the individual is unable to conduct his or her obligations devoid of assistance, and this is followed by anxiety and depression. Changes occur mainly in the brain whereby the balance between dopamine and acetylcholine is affected. In essence, these two transmitters operate in equilibrium. This is attributed to the loss of cells that manufacture dopamine in the brain.