Golf above par when it comes to Parkinson’s  

Golf is better than tai chi for improving balance and mobility in people with Parkinson’s Disease. 

The small study involving 20 people with moderate Parkinson’s disease found golfers completed a walking and balance test 0.96 seconds faster at the end of the 10 week study, while those who did tai chi were 0.33 seconds slower.

Overall satisfaction with the choice of sport was similar in both groups, however 86% of golfers compared to 33% of tai chi participants said they were “definitely” likely to continue the activity.

“Our finding that golfers were much more likely to continue with their sport is exciting because it doesn’t matter how beneficial an exercise is on paper if you people don’t actually do it,” said lead researcher Anne-Marie A. Wills. 

“So if swinging a golf club is more appealing than practicing tai chi, by all means, go to a driving range and hit balls for an hour instead!”

Sinemet CR shortage resolved

An ongoing shortage of  Sinemet CR (levodopa/carbidopa) has been resolved, its manufacturer reports.

According to Parkinson’s NSW, a newly registered Australian Sinemet CR product will be exactly the same in formulation and appearance as the version currently supplied. However, the quantity will change from 60 tablets supplied in a blister pack to a quantity of 100 tablets supplied in a bottle.

Triple biomarker panel can distinguish between ischaemic and haemorrhagic stroke 

A blood biomarker panel has shown promise as a way of distinguishing between ischaemic stroke and intracerebral hemorrhage, research shows. 

The study of almost 200 patients with suspected stroke found retinol binding protein 4 and N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide identified 29.7% of IS patients with 100% specificity. 

In a subset of patients who also had Glial fibrillary acid protein, the three biomarker combination identified 51.5% of  stroke patients with 100% specificity. 

Writing in Neurology, the study authors said that if the findings are backed up in further studies, the strategy might allow pre-hospital treatment in selected patients.