A saliva gland test may be enough to diagnose Parkinson's
disease, a new study suggests. The study, which will be
presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 65th Annual
Meeting in San Diego in March, found that testing a portion of a
saliva gland might be a way to determine whether a person has
Parkinson's. "There is currently no diagnostic test for
Parkinson's disease," study author Dr. Charles Adler, with the
Mayo Clinic Arizona and a Fellow of the American Academy of
Neurology, said in a statement. "We have previously shown in
autopsies of Parkinson's patients that the abnormal proteins
associated with Parkinson's are consistently found in the
submandibular salivary glands, under the lower jaw, and this is
the first study demonstrating the value of testing a portion of
the saliva gland to diagnose a living person for Parkinson's
disease," Adler said. "Making a diagnosis in living patients is
a big step forward in our effort to understand and better treat
patients," he added. Adler and his team studie