Hand tremor, muscle stiffness, difficulty with walking, behavioral problems, and impaired speech are some of the common symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. This disease usually starts with small symptoms like slight tremors or a loss of motor control, which most people overlook. Therefore, most people come to know about this disease when more than 70% of the brain’s dopamine-producing cells have already been destroyed.
In a big breakthrough, scientists at London’s UCL Institute of Ophthalmology have developed a simple eye test that could detect Parkinson’s disease before symptoms develop.
UCL researchers have suggested that the eyes, specifically the retina, reveals the disease’s early stages. This new method just involves examination of the early changes in the retina using instruments already routinely used by optometrists in eye clinics.
This revolutionary method would offer a cheap and non-invasive way to detect the disease before brain changes occur and start treating it before it gets worse.
As per lead researcher Francesca Cordeiro from the University College London, “This is potentially a revolutionary breakthrough in the early diagnosis and treatment of one of the world’s most debilitating diseases. These tests mean we might be able to intervene much earlier and more effectively treat people with this devastating condition.”
