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The Parkinson's disease market

Nature Reviews Drug Discovery volume 10, pages 571–572 (2011)Cite this article

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Current therapeutic options

Over 40 years since its introduction, levodopa (L-DOPA) remains the most effective therapy for reducing the symptoms associated with PD. Unlike dopamine, which is unable to cross the blood–brain barrier, L-DOPA can access the brain, where it is metabolized into dopamine. It is administered five times a day on average, and patients typically experience a satisfactory response to initial treatment, which normally lasts for 1–5 years. As the disease progresses, the effects of L-DOPA tend to diminish, it becomes increasingly difficult to control the symptoms adequately and patients invariably develop motor complications that include motor fluctuations, dyskinesias, freezing and falls. Treatment guidelines have therefore emphasized two key aims: to delay the need for L-DOPA therapy, particularly in the case of younger patients who may require treatment for a longer period of time, and to slow the progression of the disease2.

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Figure 1: Shifting composition for the Parkinson's disease market.

References

  1. Datamonitor. Epidemiology: Parkinson's Disease — the aging population will cause the prevalence of Parkinson's disease to continue to grow. HC00039–001 (2011).

  2. Olanow, C. W., Watts, R. L. & Koller W. C. (2001). An algorithm (decision tree) for the management of Parkinson's disease. Neurology, 56 (Suppl. 5), 1–88 (2011).

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  3. Olanow, C. W. et al. A double-blind delayed-start trial of rasagiline in Parkinson's disease. N. Engl. J. Med. 361, 1268–1278 (2009).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Trung Huynh is at Datamonitor, 119 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3ER, UK. thuynh@datamonitor.com,

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The author declares no competing financial interests.

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Huynh, T. The Parkinson's disease market. Nat Rev Drug Discov 10, 571–572 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrd3515

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