At Parkinson and Parkinsonism Center of the “Paolo Giaccone” Polyclinic in Palermoa brand new one is available infusion therapy, subcutaneous foslevodopa/foscarbidopa, for the treatment of the disease Parkinson’s in advanced stages.
The team directed by the professor Marco D’Amelio, responsible for the structure which is part of the Neurology operational unit directed by Professor Giuseppe Salemi, began treating the first four patients.
The University Hospital Center is therefore confirmed as one of the main reference centers in Italy in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease.
The structure, in fact, is one of the five national centers that deal with the treatment of tremors resistant to medical therapy with focused ultrasound with a multidisciplinary team including neuroradiologists and neurosurgeons.
Therapy
There Levodopa/carbidopa for subcutaneous infusion has only been commercially available in Italy for a few weeks.
“The availability of these innovative treatments in Palermo – explains D’Amelio – will allow us to increasingly reduce the migration of patients to other regions”.
Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative disease characterized by the progressive slowing of voluntary movements, linked to a progressive reduction of a brain neurotransmitter, dopamine.
Current therapy is mainly based on the administration of tablets taken orally that restore deficient brain dopamine levels.
“To overcome the limits of oral therapy – continues the neurologist – in recent years, a method has been introduced which involves the “continuous” administration of drugs for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease subcutaneously or directly into the intestine through an infusion pump, guaranteeing stable control of the symptoms in both cases”.
In recent years, Professor D’Amelio, in collaboration with Professor Francesco D’Arpa, of the Digestive Endoscopy Service of the Polyclinic, has selected and implanted this latest device in over 30 patients with excellent results in terms of improvement in the quality of life of the patient and their caregivers.
However, positioning the levodopa/carbidopa gel delivery system requires a small endoscopic intervention and the need for periodic checks.
“The new subcutaneous drug system – continues D’Amelio – instead it is applied without any surgical intervention, includes only a small infusion pump that can be tied to the belt and is easy to use, effective and free of particular complications”.
Infusion treatments, whether subcutaneous or jejunal, are indicated for advanced Parkinson’s disease with severe motor fluctuations that are difficult to control with oral or transdermal pharmacological therapy.
