Neurology · 1989 · 42 citations · 0 references
MedicineNeurologyPharmacotherapyClinical NeuroscienceMovement DisordersNeuropharmacologyDopaminergic PharmacologyDrug-induced Movement DisordersMovement Disorder PharmacotherapyNeurodegenerative Disease PharmacotherapyParkinson DiseaseParkinsonian DisordersDrug-induced SpasmsDystonia PharmacotherapyDystonia TreatmentMedically Refractory DystoniaParkinson's Disease PharmacotherapyParkinson’s Disease PharmacotherapyParkinson’s Disease TreatmentPatterns
We report the clinical spectrum of 3 patients with Parkinson's disease who experienced complex patterns of levodopa-related dystonia. Dystonia was unrelieved by multiple medication regimens but responded well to continuous, duodenal levodopa infusions. Patients were able to remain mobile without severe dystonia despite a very narrow window of benefit between the levodopa concentration necessary to achieve the "on" state and that which caused the onset of dystonic spasms.