Early Treatment with Rasagiline May Slow Parkinson's Disease Impairment

Early initiation of a potential new treatment for Parkinson's disease may delay the progression of impairment associated with the disease, according to an article published in the April 2004 issue of Archives of Neurology. This conclusion was drawn from the results of the TEMPO trial ([TVP-1012] in the Early Monotherapy in Parkinson's disease Out-patients). In that trial, patients treated with once-daily rasagiline 1 or 2 mg per day for 12 months showed less impairment in Parkinson's disease features than patients whose treatment was delayed for 6 months. Impairment was measured by the patients' total Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) score. The UPDRS is commonly used to measure a patient's ability to perform mental and motor tasks and activities of daily living.