Anticholinergic drugs Parkinson disease

The efficacy of anticholinergic drugs in parkinsonism is likely due to the ability to block muscarinic receptors in the striatum. In the absence of the inhibitory action of dopamine, the actions of the intrastriatal cholinergic interneurons are unopposed, yielding enhanced stimulation of muscarinic receptors. Blockade of these receptors reduces striatal activity. The muscarinic antagonists exert only modest antiparkinsonian actions and thus are most commonly used during the early stages of the disease or as an adjunct to levodopa therapy. 

An overview of the drugs used to treat Parkinson disease is shown in Table 10-1. The primary drug used is levodopa. Other agents such as amantadine, anticholinergic drugs, catechol-O-methyltransferase... 

The primary clinical applications of antimuscarinic anticholinergic drugs include the treatment of certain gastrointestinal disorders. These drugs may also be helpful in managing Parkinson disease. In addition, they have been used to treat a variety clinical disorders involving other physiologic systems.5 The clinical ap-... 

Clinical uses listed for a specific agent reflect that agent s approved indication. Actual clinical use, however, may be limited because anticholinergics have often been replaced by agents that are more effective and better tolerated. Anticholinergic drugs used specifically to treat Parkinson disease are listed in Table 10-2, Chapter 10. 

Certain anticholinergic drugs such as benz-tropine, biperiden, and trihexyphenidyl are approved for use in treating Parkinson disease (see Chapter 10, Table 10-2 for a more complete list). These drugs... 

This book shows how Eastern physicians used belladonna alkaloid for Parkinson s disease but also provides evidence that belladonna alkaloid contains anticholinergic drugs, which counterbalance the dopamine deficiency syndrome seen in Parkinson s disease. 

Bornaprine, a synthetic quaternary ammonium compound, has been used as an anticholinergic drug in treating Parkinson s disease (1). Its adverse effects are those characteristic of the anticholinergic drugs. 

Brocks DR. Anticholinergic drugs used in Parkinson s disease an overlooked class of drugs from a pharmacokinetic perspective. J Pharm Pharmacol Sci 1999 2(2) 39-46. 

---