There have been a number of interesting stories on the internet this week and I would like to share a few of them with you.

Parkinson’s Passport

First, the European Parkinson’s Disease Association has developed the Parkinson’s Passport.  The Parkinson’s Passport enables you to complete an information booklet about your medications and treatment and then carry it when you are out and about or traveling abroad.

Apple Care Kit

Apple has unveiled its CareKit health tracking platform and the first app, which will be available in April, is for Parkinson’s Disease.  

“When we introduced ResearchKit, our goal was simply to improve medical research and we thought our work was largely done,” Apple COO Jeff William said during an event on Monday. “But what became clear to us is that the same tools to advance medical research can also be used to help people improve care.”

Williams added that the first CareKit app is for Parkinson’s, a natural condition to target because 24 hours after Apple made ResearchKit available it led to the biggest Parkinson’s study to date.

Particular to the disease, researchers can see symptom levels across a range of days before and after medication starts, meaning physicians can track whether the treatment is actually working for a certain patient or not – if they have access to that data. The first CareKit app, Williams said, surfaces that information for patients and doctors.

At the launch, six institutions agreed to immediately begin using the app: Emory, Johns Hopkins University, Parkinson’s Disease Care New York, Stanford, the University of California at San Francisco and the University of Rochester.

Williams said the app will enable them to have more formalized conversations with patients about treatment.

Rosacea

Do you have Rosacea?  A study in Denmark linked a higher risk for Parkinson’s in people with Rosacea.  As reported in  Parkinson’s News Today The incidence rates of PD were 3.54 per 10,000 person-years in the general population, and 7.62 per 10,000 person-years in people with rosacea. PD was also found to occur about 2.4 years earlier in those with rosacea.

New Stem Cell Treatment Approach for Parkinson’s

Also from  Parkinson’s News Today Rutgers and Stanford University researchers have developed 3-D “scaffolds,” or fibers, that can support healthy and high-functioning human neurons derived from adult stem cells, which can be transplanted to the brain to replace diseased neurons. The technology represents a possible new therapeutic strategy for numerous neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and multiple sclerosis.

April is Parkinson’s Awareness Month

Look here later this week for information on how you can get involved.