Overview

Movement disorders are a group of conditions that affect the way a person moves. These disorders can significantly impact a person's quality of life, making everyday activities such as walking, dressing, and eating more difficult. These disorders can occur due to brain, spinal cord, or peripheral nerve damage and can affect people of all ages. In this blog post, we'll explore the ways of addressing movement disorders in further depth and describe how they might help people with movement disorders live better lives.

Types of Movement Disorders

There are several types of movement disorders, each having its own set of symptoms and causes, and these types are:

- Parkinson’s disease
- Huntington’s disease
- Dystonia
- Tourette’s syndrome
- Essential tremor

Let’s explore these diseases and their symptoms in detail:

- Parkinson's disease: This is a neurological disorder that generates unintentional or uncontrollable movements such as shaking, stiffness, and difficulties with balance and coordination. Symptoms typically emerge gradually and progress with time. When the illness worsens, people may have difficulty walking and speaking. They may also have mental and behavioural changes, sleep issues, depression, memory problems, and fatigue.
- Huntington’s disease: This is a progressive brain disorder that produces uncontrollable movements, emotional issues, and cognitive decline. Irritability, depression, poor coordination, minor involuntary movements, and difficulty learning new information or judging are also early signs and symptoms. Chorea, or involuntary jerking or twitching motions, is common in people with Huntington's disease. Since there are no disease-modifying medicines available, -Huntington's disease treatment is symptomatic and supportive.
- Dystonia: Dystonia is a movement disorder characterised by uncontrollable muscle contractions. The affected body part twists involuntarily due to the contraction, resulting in abnormal postures or repetitive movements.
- Tourette’s Syndrome: This is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that usually manifests in childhood or adolescence. It is distinguished by several movements (motor) tics and at least one speech (phonic) tic. Coughing, throat clearing, blinking, sniffing, and facial motions are common tics (uncontrolled, sudden and repetitive movements).
- Essential tremors: This is a common movement disease characterised by tremors (unwanted and uncontrollable shaking) in both hands and arms while moving and standing stationary. It may also impact your head, voice, and walking style. Essential tremor, on the other hand, is not the same as Parkinson's disease. There is no cure for essential tremors. However, treatments to alleviate symptoms are available.

What Are Treatment Options for Addressing Movement Disorders?

Fortunately, several treatment options are available to help manage the symptoms of movement disorders, including medications and deep brain stimulation. We will now discuss how these options impact the lives of people.

Medication for Movement Disorders

Medications are often the first line of treatment for movement disorders. Several classes of medications can be used, including dopamine agonists, anticholinergics, and levodopa. Medicines used to treat movement disorders function by addressing particular chemical imbalances in the brain that cause the disorder's symptoms. They may function differently to alleviate symptoms depending on the type of movement condition.

With Parkinson's disease, for example, the loss of dopamine-producing neurons in the brain causes a decline in dopamine levels, which causes characteristic motor symptoms, such as tremors, stiffness, and bradykinesia (slowness of movement). Therefore Levodopa is the first-line medication for Parkinson’s as it helps replace the lost dopamine or increase it. Drugs like Amantadine, Ropinirole and Selegiline are also used for Parkinson’s disease treatment.

Similarly, the doctor might prescribe the anticholinergic agent class of medication to a person suffering from dystonia. Anticholinergics, such as trihexyphenidyl and benztropine, can help to reduce tremors and stiffness by blocking the action of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that can contribute to these symptoms. Benzodiazepines, such as clonazepam, can help reduce anxiety and muscle spasms, a common symptom of movement disorders.

Antipsychotics such as Haloperidol are commonly used to treat Tourette's syndrome. Clonidine, a blood pressure-reducing medication, has been reported to be beneficial in treating some tic disorders. Botox can treat facial spasms, blepharospasm, and torticollis (dystonia of the neck muscles).

Anti-seizure medications such as carbamazepine, phenytoin, gabapentin, and baclofen can also help with movement disorders.

While medications can effectively manage movement disorder symptoms, they can also have side effects. Working closely with your healthcare provider to monitor your symptoms and adjust your medication regimen as needed is important.

Deep brain stimulation for movement disorders

Medication may not provide adequate relief for some people. Deep brain stimulation may be considered in such cases for addressing movement disorders. Deep brain stimulation entails implanting a tiny device that sends electrical impulses to particular parts of the brain. This can help alleviate the symptoms of movement problems such as tremors, stiffness, and difficulty in movement.

Disorganised electrical signals in the parts of the brain that control movement create movement-related symptoms of Parkinson's disease and other neurological diseases. When DBS is successful, it disrupts the abnormal signals that cause tremors and other movement disorders.

This technique consists of two to three procedures frequently performed at various periods. The first or two procedures involve inserting stimulation leads into either side of your brain, simultaneously or separately. The stimulator battery, also known as a pulse generator, is implanted under the skin of your upper chest in the second procedure.

It's important to note that only some are candidates for deep brain stimulation. Your healthcare provider can help determine if this procedure is appropriate for you.

Complementary therapies for movement disorders

In addition to medications and deep brain stimulation, several other treatment options are available for movement disorders. These may include physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy. These therapies can help improve mobility, balance, and coordination and help individuals with movement disorders perform everyday activities more easily.

Focusing on overall health and wellness is important when managing movement disorders. Eating a healthy diet, getting enough sleep, and engaging in regular exercise can all help improve symptoms and overall quality of life.

You can also get in touch with the expert doctors at Narayana Healthcare based in your city to get immediate attention and medical support during injuries, health disorders or any other health concern.

When to Consult a Doctor?

You can also get in touch with the expert neurology doctors at Narayana Healthcare based in your city to get immediate attention and medical support during a sudden health concern.

Conclusion:

Addressing movement disorders can be challenging, but with the right treatment plan in place, individuals with these conditions can lead fulfilling and meaningful lives. It's important to work closely with your healthcare provider to develop a treatment plan that is tailored to your specific needs and goals. With the right treatment and support, individuals with movement disorders can thrive.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How do you handle movement disorders? A. Therapy choices vary according to the nature and severity of the movement problem. However, some frequent techniques include: Medicines, surgery, physical therapy, speech therapy, and assistive gadgets are all options.

Q. What are the three most common movement disorders? A. Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, and dystonia are the three most prevalent movement disorders. Q. What are movement disorders? A. The phrase movement disorders refer to a group of nerve system (neurological) illnesses involving increased, decreased, or delayed movements. These movements can be voluntary or involuntary. Levodopa, Restless legs syndrome, Ataxia, and Chorea are a few of the movement disorders.

Q. What medicine is used for movement disorders? A. Clonazepam, gabapentin, lacosamide, levetiracetam, oxcarbazepine, perampanel, phenobarbital, pregabalin, primidone, topiramate, and zonisamide are the most common anti seizure medications used to treat movement disorders.

Q. What causes movement disorders? A. Brain injuries, including head trauma, infection, inflammation, metabolic abnormalities, toxins, or unwanted drug side effects, can cause movement disorders. They can also indicate other underlying diseases or conditions, including hereditary disorders.

Reference:

- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/movement-disorders/symptoms-causes/syc-20363893
- https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/parkinsons-disease
- https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/condition/huntington-disease/
- https://www.ssmhealth.com/conditions-treatments/neurosciences/movement-disorders
- https://nyulangone.org/conditions/movement-disorders/treatments/medication-for-movement-disorders
- https://www.aans.org/en/Patients/Neurosurgical-Conditions-and-Treatments/Movement-Disorders