Movement disorders : official journal of the Movement Disorder Society
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We investigated autonomic function in patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) by measuring sympathetic skin response (SSR) and R-R interval variation (RRIV). Sixty-two PD patients and 62 age-matched normal subjects were recruited. Abnormal SSR was noted in nine (14.5%) PD patients, including three in Stage II, three in Stage III, and three in Stage IV, but not in Stage I patients or normal subjects. ⋯ RRIV was not affected by acute or chronic L-dopa treatment. The agreement between RRIV and SSR in PD patients was poor (kappa = -0.07). It appears that abnormal SSR, but not RRIV, may be associated with more autonomic disturbances in PD patients.
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We describe four patients, two with Tourette's syndrome, one with the combination of idiopathic dystonia and essential-like tremor, and one with tardive dystonia, who noted marked exacerbation of their movement disorders after exposure to cocaine. These patients provide support for the hypothesis that dopaminergic preponderance plays an important role in the pathogenesis of certain hyperkinetic movement disorders. Cocaine should be regarded as an important cause or precipitant of hyperkinetic movement disorders.