Call for 1,000 silver surfers for new Parkinson's research project
11 April 2011
We're looking for 1,000 healthy, internet-using people without
Parkinson's aged 60 to 80 to take part in a new research
project. The project could help researchers agree on common
early symptoms of Parkinson's.
Visit www.predictpd.com for full information about the study and to register to take part.
The year-long pilot project, called Predict PD, launches today,
the first day of Parkinson's Awareness
Week.
This innovative online study, funded through an innovation grant of £35,000, is the first of its
kind.
It's being led by Dr Alastair Noyce at Queen Mary, University of
London, in collaboration with University College London.
What is Predict PD?
Ongoing Parkinson's research suggests that problems including
anxiety, depression and constipation, as well as sleep and smell
disorders, may occur up to 20 years before the movement problems of
Parkinson's actually appear.
Predict PD will ask people to take part in 3 simple online tests
that will look for factors known to be linked to increased risk of
Parkinson's.
Everyone that takes part will also be sent a 'scratch and sniff'
smell test through the post, which will also be completed
online.
How to take part in Predict PD
Visit the Predict PD website for full
information about the study and to register to take part.
Participants must be based in the UK.
Looking for common early symptoms
Dr Alastair Noyce (pictured right) comments:
"It's very exciting for
us to be starting this pilot study. Whilst we may suspect a small
number of those who do the tests to be at increased risk, we won't
know yet how accurate our tests will be.
"We will contact 300 people who have taken part in the research
by email or telephone to collect extra information or arrange to
visit them.
"However, this does not necessarily mean that these people are
at higher risk, and we will be contacting people with and without
the symptoms we want to study."
Finding an earlier diagnosis
Dr Kieran Breen, our Director of Research and Development
adds:
"We are committed to funding cutting edge research to find a
cure and better treatments for Parkinson's. Finding an earlier
diagnosis is an integral part of our 5-year
research strategy.
"Taking the survey won't take long. And you will be helping our
researchers to identify Parkinson's much sooner in the future if
they know what common symptoms to look for in the very early
stages."
Parkinson's Awareness Week - join us
Whoever you are, you can join us during Parkinson's Awareness
Week. There are so many ways to get involved.
- email
-
Share