YOPD Symptoms & Side Effects

YOPD Symptoms and Management

People with PD can have myriad symptoms – both motor and non-motor. What’s right as treatment for one is not necessarily right for another – and can even be detrimental. In the first instance make sure that you know the support available to you – and request whatever else you need.

YOPD is characterized by the typical four symptoms of Parkinson’s:

1) rigidity,
2) slowness of movement (bradykinesia),
3) resting tremor, and
4) postural instability

however, the progression of these symptoms is slower. The most common initial symptoms for YOPD are rigidity and painful cramps.

Parkinson’s 101

If you do a quick search for images of Parkinson’s online, most of the ones you’ll see are of older men in stooped positions. But even though many believe that Parkinson’s only occurs in older people (the lack of age diversity in pictures is one reason for that), 4-10% of people who are diagnosed with Parkinson’s are under the age of 50. It’s called young-onset Parkinson’s Disease (YOPD). While some studies define the age range as under 40 or 45, most research cites those under 50 as being YOPD.

read A PRIMER ON YOUNG ONSET PARKINSON’S DISEASE (YOPD) AND WHAT’S COMING NEXT