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Previous Volume 341:1159 October 7, 1999 Number 15 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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Edited by Peter A. LeWitt and Wolfgang H. Oertel. 260 pp. London, Martin Dunitz, 1999. £65. ISBN 1-85317-379-7.

The introduction more than 30 years ago of the dopamine precursor levodopa as a treatment for symptoms of Parkinson's disease was a dramatic breakthrough in neurologic therapeutics. Levodopa, now administered in combination with a peripheral decarboxylase inhibitor to minimize nausea, remains the cornerstone of symptomatic therapy for Parkinson's disease. It consistently ameliorates clinical signs of the disease, enhances motor function, and decreases mortality. Yet devastating disability develops over time. After a few years of improved function, the signs of Parkinson's disease again advance, and treatment-associated complications emerge. Fluctuations in clinical response (motor fluctuations) develop, mirroring fluctuations in serum levodopa concentration: . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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