What You Need to Know About Psychosis in Parkinson’s Disease

Psychosis doesn’t just affect individuals with psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia. It also affects other illnesses, including Parkinson’s disease (PD), a degenerative disorder that disturbs movement and balance. Over five million people worldwide have PD, struggling with symptoms such as shaking, stiffness, slowness of movement and instability. “Psychosis in Parkinson’s disease is very common,” according to Michael S. Okun, M.D., national medical director at the National Parkinson Foundation and author of the Amazon no. 1 bestseller Parkinson’s Treatment: 10 Secrets to a Happier Life. In fact, psychosis may affect 1 in 5 Parkinson’s patients, he said. And as many as 2 out of 3 patients may experience minor symptoms, “such as non-bothersome illusions.” (An example is “seeing something in the corner of your eye that may not be there, [such as] a bug in the sink for an instant.”) “Patients primarily experience visual hallucinations,” said James Beck, Ph.D, the director of research programs at Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. A smaller number of patients – 10 to 20 percent – experience auditory hallucinations, he said. Some patients also may experience delusions, or fixed false beliefs. According to Dr. Okun in his piece on managing psychosis in PD: “Delusions are usually of a common theme, typically of spousal infidelity. Other themes are often paranoid in nature (such as thinking that people are out to steal from one’s belongi...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Caregivers Disorders General Medications Parkinson's Self-Help Seniors Treatment Amazon Belongings Burglary Degenerative Disorder Director Of Research Disease Foundation False Beliefs Hallucinations Illusions Infidelity Source Type: news