In about 80% cases, Parkinson’s disease (PD) contributes to all causes of parkinsonism (diseases with symptomatic similarity to PD). However, patients may present symptoms non-specifically, and other clinical features that do not belong to PD. Such diseases are grouped as atypical parkinsonism or Parkinson’s plus syndromes. This article gives a brief outline of distinguishing features of atypical parkinsonism and discuses the diseases involved.
Classically, idiopathic PD is described as a neurodegenerative disease characterized by a lesion in the substantia nigra of the brain resulting slow and gradual presentation of tremor, rigidity, akinesia, slowness, and impairment of postural reflexes. Another key feature of PD is that it responds to Levodopa . Distinguishing features of atypical parkinsonism: The clinical similarity of atypical parkinsonism to PD is related to neurodegeneration…
