Global Health Asia-Pacific September 2020 September 2020 | Page 43

The increasing incidence of PD will incapacitate a great number of people
according to the MalayMail. While the current numbers
compare favourably to the estimated 60,000 in
Thailand and 120,000 in the Philippines, the trend is
concerning.
“By 2040, we can truly talk about a pandemic
that will result in increased human suffering, as well
as rocketing societal and medical costs. How can
the community be made aware of this scenario and
implement changes in research priorities and care
programmes to lessen the burden of the upcoming
pandemic�� cautioned Dr �atrik �rundin, the editorin-chief
of the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease, to the
media.
“The tide of PD is rising and spreading. PD exacts
an enormous human toll on those with the disease
and those around them. The strain of caregiving
has adverse health consequences of its own. The
economic costs of PD are also substantial, poised to
grow, and at least in the US, overwhelmingly directed
at institutional care, which few desire,� wrote the
paper’s lead author Dr �ay Dorsey, a neurologist
with the Department of Neurology and the Center for
Health and Technology at the University of �ochester
Medical Center in �ew �ork.
One of the worrying trends is that, as the world’s
population ages, so will the incidence of PD, given
that the number and proportion of individuals over
65 are rapidly growing. The combined result is an
unprecedented rise in the number of people with PD.
�xacerbating the age-�D link is that the byproducts
of industrialisation may be contributing to
the rising rates of �D. And with industrialisation still
emerging in many parts of the world, new cycles of PD
incidence are expected.
But the spread is not inevitable. This is because,
while pesticides, solvents, and heavy metals have
been linked to PD, there are ways to minimise
exposure and decrease the risk of getting it.
“There’s no known cause for Parkinson’s disease.
People from all walks of life get it. Nevertheless, I
suggest that people should live healthily, eat and sleep
well, and avoid any places or things that are deemed
dangerous to health,� said Sara �ew, �resident of the
Malaysian �arkinson’s Disease Association (M�DA), to
�lo�al �ealth �sia��aci�c (���).
Lew also has some advice for those who have
PD and their families. “On the individual level,
understanding Parkinson’s is very important for the
patient as well as the caregivers to deal with the
condition, as misconceptions or lack of understanding
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