In late March, the Parkinson Society British Columbia hosted clinical counselor Courtney Doherty to speak on “Mental Health and Parkinson’s.”  She described depression, anxiety, and apathy -- all common changes in mood in Parkinson’s disease (PD).  And she provided extensive information for how these changes can be treated, particularly in non-pharmacological ways. 

In mid-March, the American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) hosted a webinar titled “Spring Into Exercise: Put Your Best Foot Forward.”The webinar featured three physical therapists from the APDA’s Center for Neurorehabilitation at Boston University addressing exercise for Parkinson’s disease (PD). 

In mid-March, Columbia University’s Taub Institute hosted the webinar “Palliative Care and Hospice Care Planning” with neurologist Dr. Reena Gottesman. This webinar was part of a four-part series on Lewy body disorders hosted by the Taub Institute at Columbia University. Dr. Gottesman described when palliative care and hospice care are appropriate, and focused on palliative care and hospice care for those with dementia and advanced dementia. (In this series, the term “Lewy body disorders” was used rather than the term “Lewy body dementia.” Lewy body dementia includes both dementia with Lewy bodies and Parkinson’s disease dementia).  

In early March, the Parkinson & Movement Disorder (PMD) Alliance hosted movement disorder specialist Dr. James Morley on a webinar on self-care, exercise and motivation. Though the topic was described as “Motivation and Parkinson’s” the focus of Dr. Morley’s talk was about self-care and how to motivate yourself to exercise after receiving a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease (PD).

“Holistic Health and Wellness” was a session presented by Stanford movement disorder specialist Dr. Maya Katz at the “Better Lives, Together Summit.”  The summit, held in late February, was organized by the Fresno Parkinson’s Support Group. In her session, Dr. Katz reviewed the concept of total health. She said that physical, psychological, social, and spiritual health all need to be addressed by your care team. 

“Movement & Nutrition” was a webinar hosted by the American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA), as part of its “Let’s Keep Moving with the APDA” series. This webinar featured registered dietitian Rachel Reynolds.  Rachel detailed how a balanced diet is helpful for everyone’s health and especially helpful for people with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Rachel states that on average, Americans are getting more protein than they actually need. For those with PD, this can be problematic because a higher protein intake can result in needing a higher dose of Sinemet, which can lead to negative side effects.  She recommends eating a balanced diet of whole grains/starches, vegetables, and protein. 

In late February 2021, the American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) hosted four of its APDA-funded researchers to provide an update on what their labs have been working on. In the “APDA Virtual Research Roundtable,” Dr. Vikram Khurana discussed his lab’s research in stem cells; Dr. Karen Nuytemans discussed identifying genetic factors that influence development of PD in hispanic populations; Dr. Brian Daniels explained his research of the role of inflammation and genetics in PD, and Dr. Bonnie Wong described her research into the effectiveness of telehealth visits during COVID and beyond. The researchers answered questions from the listeners.