Pet Pooch Can Help Treat Parkinson's

A significant treatment for Parkinson's disease has been revealed by doctors - a pet pooch.

Health of a 28-year-old woman with the brain disease improved thanks to her pooch.

Parkinson’s Disease - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment
Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease caused by progressive dopamine brain cells loss. Symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are correctable to an extent.

The woman, who started taking large doses of four different drugs a day to control symptoms three years after being diagnosed, had a morphine pump for 14 hours a day and her health was deteriorating fast.

But after being given a highland terrier by a friend, docs reported improvements in symptoms and a drop in the drugs she needed, reports The Sun.

What's more, she no longer needed her daily morphine.

About Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson's Disease is a chronic, progressive, brain disorder common among the elderly. It affects coordination between the brain and the muscles

Doctors at Imperial College London, who report her case in the Journal Of Neurology, said: "Remarkably sustained benefits occurred, with improvement in her walking and symptoms including appetite, sleep and bowel function, as well as socialisation."

Docs are not able to zero in on the reason as to how the dog had such a dramatic effect, but they say that having to walk, feed and look after the pet encouraged her to exercise regularly.

Parkinson's Disease
Slide animation on Parkinson disease. It is a progressive movement disorder due to degeneration of nerve cells of the substantia nigra of the brain. The symptoms get worse with time but drugs or surgery can control them. PD cannot be cured.

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Parkinson's Disease - Surgical Treatment
Slide animation on surgery for Parkinson disease. Surgery is only indicated where drugs fail to control the symptoms of this progressive movement disorder. Surgery cannot cure the disease.