Parkinson's Drug Tied to Gambling Addiction

Foxnews ^

[mhking]

So does ritalyn force you to vote Moonbat?

Just damn.

If you want on the list, FReepmail me. This IS a high-volume PING list...

[FormerACLUmember]

Many Parkinson's drugs, beginning with DOPA, cause manic psychosis. This includes bouts of bizarre sexuality and compulsive gambling.

So the article is completely legit.

[savedbygrace]

No, just free bottled water. <GRIN>

[dhuffman@awod.com]

11 + 14 = 25 is a 'faint' pattern in a population of 300 million. Yes, you don't 'know' but you opine from anecdote, someone else's even.

[joesnuffy]

The casinos will be putting this in the water

[Lazamataz]

Great. Next they're going to have drugs that make you want to vote Democrat. {{shudder}}

They already gottem.

[layman]

After losing thousands of dollars playing slot machines

Could it be that with all that shaking going on their quarters are missing the slot, flying over the top of the machine, and landing in the purse of the little old lady from Topeka playing the machine on the other side? Hmmmmm ... I wonder.

[joylyn]

Sorry, but my late boyfriend had Parkinson's and, eventually, a brain tumor as well. Both in turn led to dramatic behavior changes -- can't say how much of this related to the disease and how much to the drugs, but it does happen. He gave out his credit cards to homeless people, ordered hundreds of porn tapes (when he had never previously bought any), was bilked by con artists, and punched out a man in a dispute over a cab. etc. All things he would NEVER have done before -- and I knew him for 27 years.
I know you all want to believe in free will and personal responsibility -- and I do believe in those things, generally speaking. But changes in brain chemistry can and do instigate bizarre behavior. Strange, yet true.

[sandbar]

I wonder if this is connected to my father. He takes Senemet for Parkinson's and lately has gotten addicted to buying DVD's. He'll spend nearly $300 a week if I let him on TV show seasons that he won't even watch. I do believe that this is more from a compulsion brought on by the dementia associated with Parkinson's rather than the drug. He did weirder stuff before he was on Aricept for the dementia.

[sandbar]

>>>ordered hundreds of porn tapes (when he had never previously bought any>>>

Please see my post. I am convinced more than ever that this is a sympton of the disease.

[babygene]

"Many Parkinson's drugs, beginning with DOPA, cause manic psychosis."

My wife has been taking Parkinson's drugs for years. She has never taken the agnostist referred to, however PD drugs as a rule do not cause manic psychosis. Where are you getting your information?

The most common drug for Parkinson's is carbidopa/levidopa. The wife has been taking this for 30 years, and we have hundreds of acquaintances who take it. You can do a google search and check out the side effects. They do not include what you relate.

[Born Conservative]

So the article is completely legit.

I totally agree with you. Seems as though many FReepers immediately dismiss new theories as junk science, and are not open minded enough about these theories to be able to consider them as legit.

[Tom_Busch]

Many drugs used for Parkinsons affect dopamine levels, and other neurotransmitters as well. Compulsive behavior as a result, is not out of the question at all.

[leopat]

That article was written by a very well known doctor from Mayo Clinic. It is very true that the drug mentioned CAN and some times DOES cause compulsive behavior. I have a brother who has had Parkinson's for several years and after taking that drug for a couple of years, slipped into compulsive/obsessive mode! Seeing what it has done to him, his wife and daughter, it saddens me to see some of you making such awful remarks about it. It was something over which he had no control, and being in that mode he wouldn't listen to his wife or anyone else. Thank the Good Lord, he is on different meds and is no longer that person whose personality changed so drastically. He's getting back to the man we've known and loved all these years! I've done lots of research on Parkinson's and there is lots more research to be done just to begin to understand all the terrible things that P.D. patients go through. Please don't kid around with something that serious, folks. Thanks.

[terri54568]

You people just kill me. How much research did YOU do before you came up with your brilliant answers. I suppose the Mayo Clinic just decided to wake up one day and make up reports SHOWING the relationship between Mirapex, Requip, Permax and compulsive behaviors!!! I suppose the fact that the drug company who made it has now put the warning on the side affects sheet has decided that they are doing it to keep everyone happy? lol...I don't think so. And I suppose that the fact that there is evidence PROVING that they knew about this in there clinic studies on people but decided to keep it hidden. And that in 2003 when they and the FDA were given reports from well respected clinics and their answer was "we feel that it is not a big enough problem at this time to warrent a warning being issued" means that everyone that it was effecting AND the Mayo Clinic were just in it for the fun of it. It might be wise before you show your intelligence to research the claim before you open your mouth.

[PA Engineer]

And I suppose that the fact that there is evidence PROVING that they knew about this in there clinic studies on people but decided to keep it hidden.

The Agonists had reports as statistical outliers. My wife who is the now the largest PD Neurologist (probably in the world) with excess of 3.5K primary PD plus other movements related patients has only had three (3) cases she can attribute to the agonist class of drugs.

These drugs have proved to be life savers as well as L-Dopa extenders for her patients. I do not think you will find many of her patients who would readily give up this class of drugs. Her take on this is nothing more than media hype and further attempts at delegitimizing the drug companies on the left.

3 out >3,500 is an outlier and nothing more than lawyer insurance.

Not all of the Agonists work on the same neuro-receptors. This indicates that disease progression may have more to do with obsessive behavior. Many PD patients prior to Agonists had suffered stages of sexual obsession as well as other obsession related disorders.