There are four major symptoms which are key to be aware of when diagnosing the disease. There are also many other symptoms which have been observed in persons with Parkinson's disease. The most common of all the symptoms is the tremor. The classic PD tremor is a rhythmic back and forth movement of the thumb and forefinger, sometimes referred to as "pill rolling". However, trembling can also affect the arms, legs, face and jaw. Approximately seventy-five percent of PD patients develop tremor, particularly in the earliest of stages. Tremors tend to affect only one side of the body, which t

herefore may cause a feeling of unbalance. Although tremor is so common, about twenty-five percent never develop significant tremor (Cram 5).

Furthermore, a very frustrating symptom is the slowness of movement-bradykinesia. The word bradykinesia comes from a Greek origin, brady meaning slowness and kinesia meaning movement. The complete word refers to the slowness in initiating and executing movement. A person who is suffering from Parkinson's disease has much trouble with repetitive movements, they gradually become slower and "smaller". It becomes difficult or maybe impossible for the person to do more than one thing at a time. The simple task of merely brushing their teeth or fastening a button becomes a project. The person may also experience more difficulty with automatic movements in contrast to learned ones. For instance, walking, blinking and swallowing are actions which are performed daily without giving them a second thought. The person may actually experience more trouble with these routine movements but still be able to play an instrument or perform a dance routine (11).

Understanding the cause(s) of Parkinson's disease may be the first step in designing a cure for it. For this reason, questions about its cause(s) have been a primary focus of medical research. Unfortunately, the cause of Parkinson's disease has not yet been discovered (Jahanshahi 19). Most people who are diagnosed of primary Parkinson's disease have "Idiopathich Parkinson's Disease", idiopathic meaning the etiology or exact cause is unknown. Patients may attempt to link the onset of Parkinson's symptoms with some acute trauma such as an accident, surgery, extreme emotional distress, repeated blows to the head, carbon monoxide poisoning, an example of this would be the great Mohammed Ali. (www.parkinson.org/pdedu.htm)… However, most neurologists say that most people who experience traumatic experiences such as these listed above do not develop a movement disorder such as PD. There are a few theories about the cause of PD, but the real cause remains a mystery. The first theory is that sometime in the patient's life there was oxidative damaging tissues, including neurons. Other scientists believe that external or internal toxins may destroy dopamine-messenger neurons. Exposure to such things as pesticides, carbon monoxide, heavy metals, drug reactions, or toxins in food supply may cause damage. A relatively new theory suggests the tendency to develop PD may be inherited. Neither this, nor any other theory is a proven fact and should not be taken as a reason for concern (Cram 12).

People who suffer from PD can not react fast enough as to reach their arms out when falling, which happens quite often, therefore sometimes inducing serious injuries (Jahanshahi 13-14). People with PD usually have bad posture causing back pains. These symptoms tend to worsen over time causing it to be very dangerous for the person to be alone (Cram 6). As previously mentioned, "freezing" can occur when walking. People have reported that they have been walking, when all of a sudden they could not move. One lady, Miss D., shared her experience, "It's like they [her feet] had a will of their own. I was glued there, you know. I felt like a fly caught on a strip of fly-paper…I have often read about people being rooted to the spot, but I never knew what it meant-not until today." (Jahanshahi 14-15).

Another common symptom is stiffness and rigidity, or better known as "freezing". In order for the body to maneuver smoothly, opposing sets of muscles must relax and contract alternately. In a person who has been diagnosed with PD, the muscles may remain constantly tense and contracted, forcing the person to freeze, literally (Cram 6). In the early stages, rigidity is often a symptom that patients are not to aware of. The

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