How many people worldwide have Parkinson's Disease and what is the mortality rate...reliable sources please?

Senior Moments

Parkinson's Disease is a neurological condition that was named after Dr James Parkinson who in 1817 first described it in an essay titled The Shaking Palsy. Currently the number of people with Parkinson's Disease is over 1.6 milllion over the age of 65 in Europe (World Health Organisation figure) of which 120,000 are in the United Kingdom. There are over 1 million afffected by PD in the USA, 100,000 in Canada , and it is estimated the number of people with PD worldwide is approximately 4 million. - http://spring.parkinsons.org.uk/sppdintro.htm Mortality/Morbidity: Clinical symptoms worsen over time. Prior to introduction of levodopa, PD caused severe disability or death in 25% of patients within 5 years of onset, in 65% in the next 5 years, and in 89% of those who survived 15 years. The mortality rate from PD was 3 times that of the general population matched for age, sex, and racial origin. With introduction of levodopa, mortality rate has dropped approximately 50%, and longevity has been extended by several years, although no evidence suggests that levodopa actually alters the underlying pathologic process or stems the progressive nature of the disease.- http://www.emedicine.com/pmr/topic99.htm Apr 17 02, 7:34 AM

5jonesk

Approximetly between 4-4.5 million people have it including Micheal J. Fox. Apr 17 02, 8:47 PM