A team from Laval University believes that it may be possible to detect Parkinson’s disease thanks to a simple retina exam.
According to a study published in the May Edition of the journal Neurobiology of Diseasetheir group suggests seriously considering this unprecedented track.
Indeed, the retina of people with Parkinson would respond differently from that of people with bright stimuli, reveal research work.
Currently, the Parkinson is diagnosed when a person consults a doctor due to motor problems as tremors.
Early stage
“The disease has then been installed for several years and the neurons of the brain involved in the disease are already engaged in an irreversible process of degeneration,” explains the study manager, Martin Lévesque, professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Laval University and researcher at the Cervo Research Center.
The challenge is therefore to manage to detect the parkinson at an early stage of the disease.
In its opinion, the retina offers a non -invasive way to explore the brain.
“An unusual response from the retina to luminous stimuli could be indicative of a pathology that affects the brain,” said the researcher.
To explore this track, his research team has recruited 20 people who had been diagnosed with Parkinson for less than 5 years.
“We installed an electrode on the lower eyelid of each participant and we recorded the response of his retina to a series of flashes of different intensities, frequencies and colors. We did the same with people of the same age, but healthy, ”he explains.
Differences
The lines obtained for people with Parkinson would have a signature distinct from that of others.
The research team has carried out similar tests in transgenic mice and the answers are also different, hence their encouraging conclusion.
Parkinson is most often manifested in people over the age of 60 and the functional examination of the retina could be done from 50 years to prevent degeneration.
According to Parkinson Quebec, the disease begins insidiously and gradually evolves. Symptoms vary from person to person.
The slowness of the movements, the tremors, the rigidity of the limbs and the loss of balance are the most common symptoms.
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