Support group for Parkinson’s patients and their families at Wockhardt Hospital

Wockhardt Hospitals of Mira Road have launched a new support group to bring together the various patients who have Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers to support and guide them regarding proper treatment and care. The new program is to provide comprehensive, thoroughly personalized, and holistic support to each and every patient by addressing their various physical, clinical, diet prudence, and emotional needs. The event has seen the participation of over 50 patients with Parkinson’s disease and their families.

Parkinson’s disease is known to be a neurodegenerative disorder that tends to develop slowly, and the symptoms of the same become visible over a period of time. The various motor skills of the patient gradually tend to get affected over time as the central nervous system of the body is compromised. Shaking, rigidity, tremors, difficulty walking, and moving are some of the red flags of Parkinson’s disease. Since this disease attacks the crucial dopamine-producing neurons, Parkinson’s disease is also linked to several mental disorders such as depression, anxiety, and nervousness. There is no known treatment for this disease. It mainly affects older people in age groups of 50 and above but can also affect younger people in rare cases. There are no known causes of this disease. However, secondary Parkinson’s disease may occur due to head injuries, chemical infections, brain infections, etc.

Dr. Pavan Pai attended the event asserting, “A large number of people are living with Parkinson’s disease. Along with the patient, even his/her family is under stress. The patient has various problems such as rigidness, stiffness, speech problems, and inability to control movements. It becomes challenging to take care of such patients. There is a lack of awareness regarding this disease. People ignore signs like tremors and slowness in their daily activities, attributing them to old age or stress and depression. Parkinson’s is not just an older man’s disease that happens in 60-70 years of age it is usually idiopathic, meaning no particular cause can be attributed to it. Now, it is rarely seen in youngsters (under 50) and is known as young-onset Parkinson’s disease (YOPD). One may get it at a younger age due to genetic factors. Secondary Parkinson’s occurs due to repeated head injury, chemical exposure, and post-encephalitic (after brain infection). With the help of a support group, the patient will be able to deal with physical, mental, and emotional changes occurring due to the disease.” He is the consultant interventional neurologist at Wockhardt Hospitals of Mira Road.

Dr. Pavan Pai also stated, “The motto is to overcome myriad challenges that patients with Parkinson’s face and help them understand the disease better. The program consisted of sessions by experts Dr. Siddharth Warrier, consultant neurologist, and movement disorder specialist Dr. Ashwin Borkar and Dr. Vinod Rambal, consultant neurosurgeons, and Dr. Imran Khan, Physiotherapist. They discussed various aspects of Parkinson’s and how to deal with them. Many patients and caregivers too shared their experiences. The Parkinson’s Support Group encourages the patients to manage the disease via exercise and therapies apart from medication and helps them to improve their quality of life. Parkinson’s has no cure but can be effectively tackled with the help of expert guidance. There are advances in disease management, and we have a skilled team to handle severe cases.”

While it may be impossible to cure this disease, proper medical help can go a long way in treating and managing this disease. The support groups like these can also help the patients and their family members handle the burden of living with the disease better.