Parkinson’s disease affects nearly 200,000 French people. On the occasion of World Day, the France Parkinson association is organizing the Grand Direct, this Saturday April 10 from 9:30 am to 6 pm. A day dedicated to raising awareness through conferences, debates and activities.
Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative disease that results from the slow and progressive death of neurons in the brain. Since the area of the brain affected by the disease plays an important role in controlling our movements, people with the disease gradually make rigid, jerky and uncontrollable gestures. Parkinson’s-related disorders most often appear around the age of 50 to 70. The average age of onset of the disease in France is 57 years. Treatments exist to improve the quality of life of people affected by this pathology, but they do not allow the progression of the disease to be interrupted, which is specific to each person and depends on many factors. To this day, what causes the progressive loss of neurons in Parkinson’s disease remains unknown in most cases. Scientists agree that a set of genetic and environmental factors are involved, without always being able to clearly define them. According to figures from Assurance Maladie, it is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in France after Alzheimer’s disease. It affects 1% of the population over 65. 200,000 people are affected in France.
How does the disease mechanism work?
Dopaminergic neurons which are located in the substantia nigra of the brain are affected and over time they degenerate, They are doomed to gradually disappear. The role of these neurons is to generate and release dopamine. The latter is an irreplaceable neurotransmitter for controlling body movements, in particular automatic movements of everyday life (for example inserting a key in a lock). The disappearance of these neurons thus triggers a dopamine deficit in the brain, leaving the patient no other choice to think and reflect their movements when they were formerly automated. According to France Parkinson, dopamine is also a neurotransmitter which is linked to motivation, which can sometimes justify situations of general disinterest. Moreover, very often people suffering from side effects do not dare to talk about them out of fear or a feeling of guilt towards their loved ones. These abnormal behaviors can lead the patient in terrible suffering and a real negative spiral.
“Live better with Parkinson’s disease”
On the occasion of World Parkinson’s Day scheduled for Sunday April 11, the France Parkinson association is organizing a Grand Direct the day before, this Saturday April 10, 2021. From 9:30 am to 6 pm, three round tables will be filmed in the studios of the Cité des Sciences and broadcast live on the dedicated platform. Thus speakers, doctors and specialists will intervene around several themes such as “the development of the habitat: making daily life easier”, “the recognition of rights: how to assert them” but also “intimacy, sexuality and Parkinson’s: dare talk about”.
The interventions will be accessible free of charge, broadcast online and live through this platform: Le Grand Direct France Parkinson. It will be possible to ask questions to paramedical professionals such as physiotherapists, speech therapists or psychomotor therapists, psychologists and many others via a chat. The replay will also be available later on the Parkinson France website.