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The Financial Express

Occupational therapy for Parkinson\'s disease

| Updated: October 19, 2017 02:24:15


Occupational therapy for Parkinson\'s disease

Parkinson's is a chronic, insidiously progressing neurological condition. The most common clinical features are believed to result from the progressive degeneration and death of dopamine-producing neurones in the substantia nigra, located within the basal ganglia (Schapira 1999). Additional changes in related brain regions and in other neurotransmitters, such as noradrenaline, seratonin, glutamate and GABA, are also suspected of being associated with Parkinson's, but the exact roles and mechanisms of these structures and substances remain uncertain (Fox et al 2009).
One study shows the annual mortality rate per 100,000 people from Parkinson's in Bangladesh has increased by 46.6 per cent since 1990 at an average of 2.0 per cent a year.
For men, the deadliness of Parkinson's in Bangladesh peaks at age 80+. It kills men at the lowest rate at age 80+.
Death of women from the disease is the highest in Bangladesh between the age of 75 and 79. It was least deadly at 80+ age. At 0.3 deaths per 100,000 women in 2013, the peak mortality rate for women was higher than that of men, which was 0 per 100,000.
Occupational therapy can help people with Parkinson's disease stay active in daily life. By improving the skills and showing different ways to complete tasks, or introducing to handy equipment, an occupational therapist can help an affected person perform everyday activities with greater ease and satisfaction. An occupational therapist may also recommend making changes to your home or workplace to promote your independence.
For Parkinson's disease, occupational therapy generally provides assessment, treatment, and recommendations in the following areas:
•    Arm and hand therapy
•    Handwriting aids
•    Home modification information
•    Driver evaluation and vehicle modification information
•    Cooking and homemaking adaptations
•    Eating and dinnerware adaptations
•    Ways to make the most of your energy
•    Computer modifications
•    Workplace or work equipment modifications
•    Leisure skill development
•    Manual or electric wheelchair use
•    Bathtub and toilet equipment use
•    Dressing and grooming aids
Many hospitals offer outpatient occupational therapy services. However, one may need a doctor's advice to be seen in occupational therapy. 
Occupational therapy sessions vary from person to person. The first appointment includes an evaluation and recommendations. The following appointments check your progress and review or expand your programme.
Rabeya Ferdous
Occupational Therapist Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
National Institute of Neurosciences & Hospital (NINS & H)
 Dhaka,
[email protected]
 

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