Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0042963 (vomiting)
 31,883 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A sixteen-week study examined the effect of Madopa and Sinemet on patients with Parkinson disease disease suffering nausea or vomiting as side-effects of levodopa therapy and compared the efficacy of the three preparations in controlling the symptoms of Parkinson disease. Following a control period on levodopa, 20 patients underwent four consecutive four-week regimens as follows: (1) double-blind, in which a randomized half received levodopa and half received Madopa; (2) single-blind, in which all received Madopa; (3) double-blind, in which a re-randomized half received Madopa and half Sinemet; and (4) single-blind, in which all received Sinemet. Levodopa administration via Sinemet and Madopa was held to a fixed 20% of prior levodopa dosage. Almost all patients showed great reduction in nausea and vomiting with both Madopa and Sinemet. Seventy percent of the patients showed improvement in disability compared to their levodopa baseline levels. Group means showed no difference between the improvement seen on Madopa and that seen on Sinemet. However, examination of individual responses showed that the majority of patients fared distinctly better on either Sinemet or Madopa.
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PMID:A double-blind comparison of levodopa, Madopa, and Sinemet in Parkinson disease. 35 36

Sinemet (a combination of levodopa with carbidopa, a dopa-decarboxylase inhibitor) has replaced levodopa for early treatment of parkinsonism. The blocking of the systemic uptake of dopamine has eliminated the previous complications of nausea, vomiting, and cardiac and respiratory arrhythmias; pyridoxine need not now be avoided. However, the earlier appearance of abnormal involuntary movements, hallucinations, occasional psychosis, and a dopa-resistant state limits treatment efficacy. In all-over experience the combination drug offers the best relief for rigidity and akinesia. It has improved the quality of life and reduced mortality by one half. The greatest benefits appear in the first 3 years; then complications set in. The relation of complications to dosage is now better understood, and the ratio of dopa-decarboxylase inhibitor to levodopa inhibitor to levodopa of 1:4 is better than the previous 1:10. Levodopa with or without dopa decarboxylase is not a cure for parkinsonism. Some agonist drugs (bromocryptine, lisuride) are showing promise in the testing stage. The evolving knowledge about neurotransmitters and peptide messengers offers hope for the growing number of patients with parkinsonism.
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PMID:Sinemet and the treatment of Parkinsonism. 701 95

Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) stimulates the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway and improves motor functions in animal models of parkinsonism. Sinemet is currently the most widely used drug for treating Parkinson's disease. The present study has evaluated GDNF-Sinemet interactions in parkinsonian rhesus monkeys. Both GDNF and Sinemet, when given alone, significantly improved total parkinsonian scores. The response to Sinemet did not change after intracerebroventricular vehicle injections. In contrast, there was a functional interaction between GDNF and levodopa. When comparing the levodopa dose response before and after GDNF treatment, significant behavioral improvements were seen after trophic factor administration at every levodopa dose level except 500 mg. Adverse responses to Sinemet treatment alone in parkinsonian animals included vomiting, dykinesias, dystonias, and stereotypic movements. Combined GDNF-Sinemet treatment significantly reduced the occurrence of these levodopa-induced side effects, with a >90% decrease in adverse responses seen at the mid-Sinemet (250 mg levodopa-25 mg carbidopa) dose level. The only side effect from GDNF treatment was a transitory weight loss. Thus, combined GDNF-Sinemet treatment could be of therapeutic value in treating parkinsonism, by producing a greater functional response and by mitigating adverse responses to Sinemet treatment.
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PMID:Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor-levodopa interactions and reduction of side effects in parkinsonian monkeys. 926 31