Parkinson's Disease News: Experiment Reveals Potency of Ultrasound in Treatment of Disease

By Vincent Alocada , Christian Post Contributor | Dec 2, 2017 

Brain imaging showing the stages of Parkinson's disease.

A study has revealed that ultrasound can be key in the treatment of Parkinson's Disease and other neurological diseases in the future.

An experiment that tested a macaque monkey and sheep has revealed that directing bursts of inaudible acoustic energy at a specific visual area of the brain can control the animals' responses. The results, which were presented at the annual Society for Neuroscience meeting held recently, revealed that focused ultrasound used in the said animals could safely and effectively alter brain activityrather than destroy tissue.

"The finding paves the way to noninvasive stimulation of specific brain regions in humans," says Jan Kubanek, a neural engineer at Stanford University School of Medicine and lead author of the experiment on the macaque.

While the technology has yet to be tested on humans, it is now believed that it may be used for the treatment of neurological diseases and disorders like Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, addiction, and depression one day. In fact, although Dr. Helen Mayberg of the Emory University School of Medicine is not involved in the experiment, she can't help but be optimistic about the results of the study. After all, science has yet to successfully develop a cure for Parkinson's Disease patients although there are medicines, such as Levodopa, Duopa, or Mirapex that can help them manage the symptoms.

"The idea that, with a very carefully designed dose, you could actually deliver (focused ultrasound) and stimulate the brain in the place you want and modulate a circuit rather than damage it, is a really important proof of principle," Mayberg said.

According to reports, there are between seven and 10 million people all over the world who suffer from Parkinson's Disease. While the disease also affects women, more than fifty percent of those who suffer from Parkinson's Disease are men.

Last month, American civil-rights advocate and pastor Jesse Jackson have announced that he has been diagnosed with the disease, which causes a person tremors, stiffness and difficulty balancing, walking, and coordinating his movements.

https://www.christianpost.com/news/parkinsons-disease-news-experiment-reveals-potency-of-ultrasound-in-treatment-of-disease-208645/

Fight Parkinson’s disease with exercise; physical activity found to improve quality of life for PD patients

Friday, December 01, 2017 by: Ralph Flores

(Natural News) Physical activities such as exercise can go a long way in helping people who suffer from Parkinson’s Disease (PD), according to researchers.

In an in-depth study published in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease, results confirm that people who live with PD will be able to improve their gait and balance, as well as reduce the likelihood of falls, when allowed to be physically active. The research was also able to determine areas that greatly benefited from physical activity, such as a person’s strength, flexibility, mobility, and other cognitive functions.

“Exercise should be a life-long commitment to avoid physical and cognitive decline, and our research shows that this is also true for individuals with PD,” reports Dr. Christian Duval, a professor in the University of Quebec at Montreal in Canada. By being more active, people living with PD can support their day-to-day conditions despite the progressive nature of the disease.

Incidences of PD is expected to be more pronounced in the future, partly because of the advent of life-extending procedures being readily available in the market. This makes interventions aimed toward minimizing morbidity integral to alleviating sufferers of the disease and ensuring that they enjoy their quality of life. The results brought forth by the study are expected to boost activity of people living with PD and equip healthcare specialists with proper techniques to execute these activities.

Researchers performed an in-depth analysis of 106 studies that were conducted over the past three decades. These yielded a total of 868 measured outcomes for studying PD — data sufficient enough to illustrate current scientific knowledge on weighing the effects of physical activity on the overall health of people living from it.

Results were then grouped into four main classes: physical capacities, physical and cognitive functional capacities, clinical symptoms of PD, and psycho-social aspects of life. The study then proceeded to evaluate whether physical activity was beneficial for each category. The findings were then grouped in subcategories to check for specific benefits at a more granular level.

The results showed that physical activity is most potent for improving a person’s physical capacity and physical and cognitive functional capacities. For the study, physical capacity was subdivided to categories such as limb strength, endurance, flexibility or range of motion, motor control, and metabolic function. 

Of the reviewed studies, 55 percent stated the benefits of physical activity in those two categories, with some like upper limb strength being noted up to 67 percent by the studies. While the outcome for other subcategories of cognitive function were low, this was mainly due to the few amounts of material that discuss the benefits of physical activity to the cognitive function of people who live with PD.

Moreover, the relationship between physical activity and the clinical symptoms of PD, as well as the psychosocial aspects of life, cannot be fully determined, with only 50 percent and 45.3 percent of the studies displaying positive results.

The National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke classifies PD as part of a group of conditions called motor system disorders, which are the result of the loss of dopamine-producing brain cells. The disease has four primary signs: tremors (trembling in the hands, arms, legs, jaw and face), stiffness in the legs and trunk area, a noticeable slowdown in movement, and an impairment in posture and coordination. 

Symptoms become more noticeable over time, with exacerbated effects include difficulty in walking, speaking, or completing easy tasks. Onset of PD differs for each person and may occur either gradually or rapidly. Intensity of the tremors, which is one of the most pronounced signs of the disease, vary from person to person, as well as other symptoms.

As of the moment, there is no known cure for PD.

https://www.naturalnews.com/2017-12-01-fight-parkinsons-disease-with-exercise-physical-activity-found-to-improve-quality-of-life-for-pd-patients.html#

Super foods: what to eat to help prevent anxiety in Parkinson’s

Dec, 1, 2017

Anxiety and panic disorders – where people experience nervousness, worrying and fear – are common Parkinson’s symptoms. Our regular guest dietician Kathrynne Holden, explains the benefits of iron, vitamin B6 and vitamin D to help keep these symptoms at bay

We know that people with Parkinson’s can often experience non-motor symptoms such as anxiety and panic disorders. However, there is evidence to suggest that a diet rich in certain nutrients can help alleviate some of these difficulties.

Iron-rich foods

Animal foods with a high iron value include beef, beef liver, pork, poultry, and seafood such as halibut, haddock, perch, salmon, tuna, clams, and oysters. These contain heme iron, which is found in animal meat and is more readily absorbed than plant-derived, non-heme iron. Too much iron can interfere with levodopa absorption, and because these foods are also high in protein, they can block levodopa. If you use levodopa, be sure to take it at least 30 minutes before eating these foods. Fish and seafood are good choices for people with Parkinson’s because they also contain brain-supportive omega-3 fatty acids.

Plant foods high in iron include soybeans, tofu, lentils, spinach, chard, garbanzo beans. These have the non-heme form of iron, which is less well absorbed than heme iron. Acidity helps boost iron absorption, so having lemon juice or vinegar salad dressing, or an orange, in the same meal with beans and leafy greens will help you get the most iron absorption from the plant food.

According to the Food and Nutrition Information Center of the United States Department for Agriculture (USDA), the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for iron is 8mg per day for men aged 19 and older, 18mg per day for women between the ages of 19 to 50, and 8mg per day for women aged 51 and older.

Food high in vitamin B6

Tuna, turkey, beef, chicken, salmon, sweet potato, potatoes, sunflower seeds, spinach and other dark leafy greens, and bananas are all good sources of vitamin B6. Tuna, beef, poultry, salmon, and spinach are good iron sources also, so these foods provide the benefit of both nutrients.

The RDA of vitamin B6 is 1.3mg for men between the ages of 14 to 50 and women between the ages of 19 to 50. Men above the age of 50 require 1.7mg, while women of the same age need 1.5mg.

Foods rich in vitamin D

There are few foods that contain vitamin D, and of these, salmon is by far the best – a salmon steak of 115g contains 128% of the RDA. Sardines, cow’s milk, tuna, egg yolks, and shiitake mushrooms have smaller but still important amounts. Salmon is a great food to eat two to three times weekly and it’s also a source of vitamin B6 and iron too. Sunlight is a very good source of vitamin D. When sunlight is available, exposing your face and arms for around 10 minutes a day will provide sufficient amounts.

The RDA for vitamin D for all adults between the ages of 19 to 70 years is 600 IU per day. For those above the age of 71 the RDA is 800 IU per day. If taking supplements choose the vitamin D3 form, which is more easily absorbed than the D2 form.

http://parkinsonslife.eu/super-foods-eat-to-help-prevent-anxiety-in-parkinsons-kathrynne-holden/

Adding Virtual Reality Training to Treadmill Workouts Cuts Parkinson’s Patients’ Falls, Study Shows

DECEMBER 1, 2017   BY CAROLINA HENRIQUES 

Adding obstacle-avoiding virtual reality training to treadmill workouts dramatically decreases Parkinson’s patients’ falls, even in later stages of the disease, a Tel Aviv University study shows.

The research, “Disparate effects of training on brain activation in Parkinson disease,” was published in the journal Neurology.

Parkinson’s causes the gradual loss of nerve cells. This leads to cognitive and movement impairment that reduces patients’ ability to walk and increases their risk of falling.

Patients in the study had fewer falls because the virtual program caused them to use a different brain pattern than they use in treadmill training alone, researchers said.

“In previous research, we showed that patients with Parkinson’s disease use cognitive function, which is reflected in activation of the pre-frontal cortex of the brain, to compensate for impaired motor function,” Professor Jeff Hausdorff, a Tel Aviv University medical professor, said in a press release.

“We also showed that a specific form of exercise targeting the cognitive control of gait — combined treadmill training with a Virtual Reality representation of obstacles in a path — leads to a significantly lower fall rate in Parkinson’s patients,” said Hausdorff, the lead author of the study.

“The virtual reality gait program, in which patients must avoid obstacles, enhances the patients’ cognitive performance and thus reduces the requirement for prefrontal brain activity,” he added.

Seventeen patients took part in the six-week study. One group did treadmill training, and the other treadmill work plus virtual reality training.

The treadmill training for both groups was an hour long three times a week. The virtual reality training consisted of a game to play in which patients could see their feet moving around the city or in a park. The game allowed them to learn how to avoid obstacles, how to plan ahead and how to multitask.

Researchers used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to record patients’ brain activation patterns before and after the six weeks of training.

“The study’s findings reinforce the hypothesis that training improves motor [movement] and cognitive performance through improved neuroplasticity — more so than that seen with treadmill training alone,” Hausdorff said. Neuroplasticity is brain nerve cells’ ability to change connections and behavior in response to new information.

“Interestingly, the benefits of treadmill training with VR were specifically seen during walking conditions that require cognitive input” — negotiating obstacles and multitasking, Hausdorff said. These conditions are associated with falls, he said.

Patients who received VR training used fewer nerve cells to process information, the researchers discovered. In contrast, the team saw no change in nerve cell use among the patients who used a treadmill but did not have virtual reality training.

The difference in patients’ brain patterns during training led to fewer falls in the group with both treadmill and virtual realty components, researchers said.

“The takeaway here is that even relatively late in the disease, when 60-80 percent of dopaminergic  neurons [nerve cells that use the neurotransmitter dopamine to communicate] have died, there is still an opportunity to promote plasticity in the brain,” Hausdorff said. “to induce specific brain changes, exercise should be personalized and targeted to a specific clinical [disease] problem,” he said.

Researchers said it was the first study to show how task-specific exercises affect Parkinson’s patients’ brains. The team said their findings underscore the importance of having both movement and cognitive components in Parkinson’s rehabilitation.

https://parkinsonsnewstoday.com/2017/12/01/study-shows-that-adding-virtual-reality-training-to-treadmill-work-cuts-parkinsons-patients-falls/

Women with Parkinson's disease less likely than men to have caregivers

December 1, 2017 
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

Penn Medicine study highlights a general need for more support of elderly women with disabilities

PHILADELPHIA--Female Parkinson's disease patients are much less likely than male patients to have caregivers, despite the fact that caregivers report greater strain in caring for male patients.

The findings come from a large study reported today in Neurology by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. According to the researchers, the disparity between female and male patients probably derives in part from the fact that women tend to outlive their most likely potential caregivers: their husbands.

"Care provided by family and friends to people with Parkinson's disease is an important source of support, and our findings show that women living with Parkinson's are less likely to receive this support than men," said study lead author Nabila Dahodwala, MD, associate professor of Neurology at Penn Medicine. "We need strategies to improve women's access to this support."

Dahodwala and colleagues' analysis was part of a larger study of Parkinson's patients, funded by the National Parkinson's Foundation (NPF), that has been ongoing since 2009 at Penn Medicine and 20 other centers in the U.S., Canada, the Netherlands, and Israel. The analysis covered 7,209 patients enrolled during 2009-2014.

The researchers found that 88.4 percent of male patients reported having a caregiver at the time they were enrolled in the NPF study, compared to just 79.4 percent of female patients. Male patients also were more likely to have a caregiver accompany them on their first visit to a study center (61.0 percent vs 56.8 percent). This was despite the fact that caregivers of female patients reported experiencing significantly less psychological strain than caregivers of male patients.

These support-related disparities between male and female patients remained obvious even when the researchers adjusted the analysis to account for small differences between the patient groups in average age, disease duration and other variables.

The study was not designed to determine the underlying reasons for disparities in caregiver support, but as Dahodwala noted, "prior studies across multiple disabling conditions have found that women are less likely than men to have caregiver support."

Women on average live a few years longer than men, and so are more likely when elderly to be living alone rather than with a spouse/caregiver, she added. Moreover, women generally are much more likely than men to be caregivers, hinting that even married female patients whose husbands are still living are less likely to receive care from them, compared to vice-versa. Consistent with these possibilities, Dahodwala and colleagues found in the study that 84 percent of the male patients reported having their spouse as caregiver, compared to just 67 percent of the female patients. The female patients also were more than twice as likely (3.0 percent vs. 1.3 percent) to have a paid caregiver.

"Changes in health policy to better support older women with disabilities are urgently needed," Dahodwala concluded.

She and her colleagues are now following up with a study designed to identify more precisely the causes of sex disparities in caregiver support for Parkinson's patients, and to find ways to correct those disparities. "Our overall goal is to develop tailored interventions to support caregivers and, in particular, to design innovative programs to improve outcomes for women with Parkinson's disease," she said.

###

The study co-authors were Krunal Shah, Ying He, Samuel S. Wu, Peter Schmidt, Fernando Cubillos, and Allison W. Willis.

The research was supported by the National Parkinson's Foundation (PF-UP201).

Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $6.7 billion enterprise.

The Perelman School of Medicine has been ranked among the top five medical schools in the United States for the past 20 years, according to U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $392 million awarded in the 2016 fiscal year.

The University of Pennsylvania Health System's patient care facilities include: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center -- which are recognized as one of the nation's top "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S. News & World Report -- Chester County Hospital; Lancaster General Health; Penn Wissahickon Hospice; and Pennsylvania Hospital -- the nation's first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional affiliated inpatient care facilities and services throughout the Philadelphia region include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, a partnership between Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network and Penn Medicine.

Penn Medicine is committed to improving lives and health through a variety of community-based programs and activities. In fiscal year 2016, Penn Medicine provided $393 million to benefit our community.

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-12/uops-wwp120117.php

Top award for Peterborough woman who has helped thousands

December 1, 2017  By Stephen Briggs

Jill Normington

A Peterborough woman who has worked tirelessly to help thousands of people suffering from Parkinson’s has been recognised with a top award. Jill Normington from Peterborough, is the 2017 recipient of the British Geriatrics Society Special Medal Award. 

The BGS Special Medal, is an external award recognising individuals whose contribution to promote the health and wellbeing of older people throughout society has been outstanding. 

Over the years Jill has also been involved with a number of local and national service improvement projects to ensure people affected by Parkinson’s get the best out of health and social care services. She has passionately championed Parkinson’s UK’s Get It on Time campaign to ensure hospital patients with Parkinson’s, receive their medication on time so that their hospital stay can be as successful as possible. 

Jill has driven forward a Parkinson’s Care Group at North West Anglia NHS Trust in Peterborough’s City Hospital and as a result of their collaboration, there is now information for patients with Parkinson’s and their carers. 

Jill Normington, said: “I am very pleased to receive this award and to have been able to contribute to improving the lives of people affected by Parkinson’s. I know from my own experience of living with the condition for 20 years that being connected to the right information and support available is vital. The Peterborough Parkinson’s group which provides a range of exercise and social activities that are accessible to all, especially to older members is something I am particularly proud of.” 

Julie Wilson, Area Development Manager for Peterborough at Parkinson’s UK, commented: “We are delighted Jill has been awarded with the Special Medal. 

As a member of the Peterborough branch since 1997 she has been at the heart of any local inclusion events working to ensure older people with Parkinson’s are supported as much as possible. When they have needed advice about the condition or needed a friendly ear to listen to their concerns, Jill has been the one that the branch members have turned to for help.”

https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/health/top-award-for-peterborough-woman-who-has-helped-thousands-1-8272181

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Trowbridge Tavern Hosts Bartenders With A Cause

December 1, 2017   By MICHAEL J. RAUSCH

Stephanie Kozar will be serving customers at the Trowbridge Tavern on February 1 as part of the Bartenders With a Cause fundraiser. All of Ms. Kozar’s tips from that night will be donated to fund research to cure Parkinson’s disease.

• Over the next several months, bar patrons at the Trowbridge Tavern will see a new face on Thursday nights serving their favorite libations. Through February of next year, and possibly beyond, the restaurant will host a fundraising initiative called Bartenders With a Cause.

  The premise is quite simple. People sign up to be a guest bartender on a specific Thursday evening. All the tips they earn that night are donated to a cause they have a special interest in, such as funding research for a disease or earning money for a nonprofit organization. No bartending experience is required to participate, Trowbridge Tavern owner Mary Ellen McCarthy said. All that is needed is a cause.

  “Everybody wants to be a bartender for a night, so it’s a win-win situation. Everyone has fun and spends some money,” she said.

  Ms. McCarthy said because most of the participants have little to no experience tending bar, she will be behind the bar working with them. She speculated that most of the pouring will be for beer and wine, with little call for exotic mixed drinks, and her presence will be mostly supportive.

  “The guests don’t know their way around the restaurant, so I’ll be there to make it easy for them,” she said.

  Ms. McCarthy said that the Thursday nights have filled up very quickly. She said that, as of this week, there is one date in December and two dates in February still available. All of January has been filled. Asked if she would consider extending the initiative beyond February, she said absolutely.

  “Oh yeah, we’ll go as long as people have causes,” she said.

  She added that there is no specific time limit for the guest bartenders to work on their given night. She said she expects that most will start around 5 PM and finish around 8:30 PM or 9 PM. However, if the tips are still coming in, keep going, she said.

  “As long as you’re making money, stick with it,” she said.

  Bartenders With a Cause kicked off last night, Thursday, November 30, with folks from Bourne Youth Baseball stepping behind the bar to serve customers and collect tips that will go toward funding their programs. To date, nine people or organizations have signed up to participate. Among them is former Trowbridge Tavern employee Stephanie L. Kozar of Sagamore.

  Ms. Kozar now works as a bartender/waitress at the Lost Dog Pub in Orleans. She said that about five years ago, her father was diagnosed with early-stage Parkinson’s disease. She said that she has family friends, as well as a regular bar customer, who all have various levels of Parkinson’s, too. She will be tending bar on February 1, and all her tip money will go toward Parkinson’s research, she said. Her hope, in part, is to raise awareness and stimulate conversation about the disease.

  “You don’t see people talk about it. You know I don’t ever really see anything go on about it,” she said.

  Whitney O. Kent of Buzzards Bay will step behind the bar on December 21, to raise money for her Pan-Mass Challenge team “Never Give Up.” Ms. Kent’s husband, Ryan, died in July 2015 from brain cancer, after a six-year battle with the disease. That battle included two brain surgeries, one round of radiation therapy, and multiple rounds of chemotherapy at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, she said. He was 29 years old.

  “Ryan was a fighter. He fought a fight no one knew he was fighting. He was positive; driven; an amazing father, husband, brother, son and friend, even on his worse days,” she said.

  All her tips will go to her Pan-Mass team’s fundraising efforts, and every dollar her team raised for Pan-Mass Challenge events goes to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, she said.

  Another former Trowbridge Tavern bartender, Dana T. Tobey of Sandwich, will take over the bar on January 18. Mr. Tobey, who grew up in Bourne, said that he is retired after 25 years in law enforcement. He is also a licensed builder and carpenter and runs a small deejay business, the Every Day DJ.

  Mr. Tobey said that all his tips will be donated to researching a cure for diabetes. He said that he has a teenage daughter who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes two years ago.

  “Rude awakening for my family; such a vast and terrible disease. Research needs to find better options and ultimately a cure,” he said.

  Others who have volunteered to be guest bartenders are Bourne Selectman Michael A. Blanton and Bourne High School administrative assistant Tina M. Canterbury. Mr. Blanton will take over the bar at the Trowbridge Tavern on February 15, with all his tips going to the American Heart Association. Ms. Canterbury will be working the bar on January 11 and donating her tip money to Special Olympics Cape Cod Champs.

  Ms. Canterbury said that many of the athletes on Cape Cod Champs team are special education students from the Bourne Public Schools. She said that she has been involved with Special Olympics for 18 years, ever since she started working at Bourne Middle School. Her daughter, Megan, 27, at one time coached the Cape Cod Champs volleyball team, she said.

  “I thought this would be a fun way to raise money for Special Olympics,” she said.

  Assisting Ms. Canterbury behind the bar will be her son, Jack, who works as a bartender at The Chart Room. Also helping out will be Jennifer S. Reilly, a special education teacher at Bourne Middle School, and Ms. Reilly’s sister, Shannon Reilly. Ms. Canterbury said that, while she has worked as a waitress at The Chart Room in Cataumet for more than 20 years, she has no bartending experience.

  “So I can serve, but I’m not sure I can pour. We’ll find out on January 11,” she said with a laugh.
  • 
    https://www.capenews.net/bourne/news/trowbridge-tavern-hosts-bartenders-with-a-cause/article_632e7f0f-0801-5574-b77d-cd6eec48ca1d.html
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Navy veteran's landmark compensation deal has others with Parkinson's fearing trichloroethylene

December 2, 2017, By: Kurt Bayer

Steve Walker was exposed to solvent trichloroethylene at the NZ Post Office from 1969 to 1984.

Hundreds of New Zealanders may have been affected by a toxic chemical in a wide range of workplaces, a Weekend Herald investigation has found.

The discovery follows a landmark compensation pay-out to a New Zealand navy veteran who proved links between exposure to the solvent during his military service and his Parkinson's disease.

The Herald reported last month that Veterans Affairs has provided the ex-serviceman with an entitlement to disability compensation for Parkinson's, a condition attributed to his exposure to trichloroethylene (TCE) while degreasing and cleaning electronics on a Royal New Zealand Navy ship during the 1948-1960 Malayan Emergency.

The Weekend Herald has since tracked down other men who fear their handling of TCE in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s could have caused their debilitating diseases and who now want to pursue their own compensation cases.

A former New Zealand Post Office telephone exchange technician, a naval dockyards apprentice and an aircraft engineer have all spoken about using TCE in their workplaces for years, without any health and safety precautions.

None of them used gloves or breathing apparatus while being exposed to the potent halocarbon that was popular across an array of sectors and workplaces in New Zealand, including garages, railway and aircraft workshops, and other depots.

"Trichlo was strong enough to bowl you over," said 65-year-old Steve Walker, an ex-New Zealand Post Office employee at the Balclutha exchange, who now struggles with Parkinson's. "It seeped into your skin, into your clothes. It took over you completely."

Dave Schafer, a 58-year-old who used TCE weekly while cleaning instruments on Navy frigates during a five-year apprenticeship at the Devonport naval base, said: "Holy cow, that stuff was powerful. But as apprentices you kept your mouth shut and did your job, you didn't rock the boat."

Parkinson's New Zealand, the Returned and Services' Association (RSA), and those spoken to by the Weekend Herald, all believe there will be many more New Zealanders - hundreds if not thousands - who have been exposed to TCE over the years.

"Researchers have suggested there could be a significant lag time between exposure to TCE and the onset of Parkinson's," said Parkinson's New Zealand chief executive Deirdre O'Sullivan.

"As such, we have reason to believe there could be many more serving and/or ex-serving NZDF people in a similar situation to this veteran."

The potentially precedent-setting Navy veteran's decision was made on appeal to the independent Veterans' Entitlements Appeal Board, which considered appeals against decisions made under the War Pensions Act 1954.

It was made possible by ground-breaking international research including a major 2011 study on TCE exposure that concluded it was likely to result in a sixfold increase in the chances of developing Parkinson's.

Another factor was the surge of disability compensation payments to veterans exposed to toxic water at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. After decades of legal wrangling, the US Department of Veterans Affairs began accepting claims earlier this year from Camp Lejeune veterans with disabilities stemming from eight presumptive conditions, including Parkinson's.

The RSA, which has advocated for veterans sickened by environmental exposures, including those from radiation exposure and Agent Orange, wants others concerned with historic TCE exposure to come forward.

"There is also likely to be many more serving or ex-serving NZDF people in [the veteran]'s situation, related to different types of exposures, who are unaware of any possible link," said National RSA support services manager Mark Compain.

None of the men interviewed were angry with their former employers. The dangers of trichloroethylene were unknown at the time. It was even used as a surgical anaesthetic until as late as the 1980s.

ACC says while it sees claims for chronic solvent neurotoxicity, usually in relation to spraypaints, it has not yet received any claims specifically for TCE exposure in the workplace causing Parkinson's.

"Essentially for a Work Related Gradual Process claim to be accepted [for developing Parkinson's as a result of TCE exposure], there would need to be evidence that the client had suffered significant exposure to TCE in their workplace; that they had not had similar exposure elsewhere, and that there was strong evidence that people in similar working situations were shown to be at significantly greater risk of developing Parkinson's than people in the general population," an ACC spokesman said.

In April, WorkSafe recommended changes to the rules around use of TCE in New Zealand workplaces.

A spokesman for WorkSafe confirmed those changes have since been implemented in its latest version of workplace exposure standards. Workers who use the industrial solvent are now tested for trichloracetic acid in their urine at the end of the working week to ensure their health hasn't been compromised.

TCE is still approved for use under tight controls as a cleaning agent at Whenuapai and Ohakea air force bases, NZDF confirmed.

However, it said the air force was "actively investigating alternative cleaners/solvents".

Kevin Griffiths was first introduced to "trike" after starting an aircraft engineers' apprenticeship at Air New Zealand in Christchurch in 1974.

He dipped engine parts into large baths of heated TCE regularly over a 4-5 year period.

"You couldn't help but smell it. The vapour would rise about two-feet above the bath," said the 61-year-old who was diagnosed with Parkinson's aged 35.

"We'd drop them down on a hook, pull it out after about 5-10 seconds, and you'd be left with a nice clean engine part. They used to send the apprentices down the hole to clean out the bath. I remember a few guys saying that stuff's not too good but you didn't think too much about it."

An Air New Zealand spokeswoman said TCE is used as a cleaning agent at one it its engineering facilities by a few trained employees who observe strict protocols.

"We welcome the opportunity to speak with Mr Griffiths about his concerns and will reach out to him to facilitate this," she said.

Griffiths, Walker, Schafer and others who have come forward in the last six weeks, have vowed to dig further to discover whether their TCE exposure brought on their Parkinson's. Some are even considering legal action.

"It would be nice to have some accountability, not just for me but for others," Schafer said.

"Life for me is very hard. All of my old senior technicians and supervisors will be dead now, but they would've worked with it for donkeys years and it does beg a question, how might it have affected them too."

The New Zealand Post Office was split into three state-owned enterprises in 1987 including Telecom NZ which later formed Chorus as its network infrastructure division before spinning it off.

A spokesman for Chorus, which now owns the Balclutha Telephone Exchange building, said they would be happy to meet with Walker and discuss his personal circumstances.

"Our initial review shows that we had clear guidance around usage of trichloroethylene and that it was completely phased out in 1985 but clearly we need to conduct further investigation," he said.

Handling toxic chemicals 'just part of the job'

Every week, for 15 years, Steve Walker handled trichloroethylene as a New Zealand Post Office telephone exchange technician. No gloves or masks. No safety briefings or training courses. And it was often used in small, confined PABX (private automatic branch exchanges) rooms with little or no ventilation.

Based at the Balclutha exchange from 1969 to 1984, Walker took bottles of trichloroethylene (TCE), or trichlo, tricho, or trike, as the technicians called the potent solvent with fumes "strong enough to bowl you over", and applied it liberally to a hand-held tool to clean switching terminals.

"We'd tip the trichlo around, spilling it on to ourselves, with no safety measures at all, other than you were to try and not breathe too much in," says Walker, now 65 and living in Christchurch with Parkinson's disease.

"The smell was enough to nauseate you for the rest of the day. I'd be cleaning in there for days on end, it worked brilliantly too. When you started feeling dizzy, you'd go outside for a breath of fresh air.

"It could irritate the skin something shocking, and never get it on your eyes. It seeped into your skin, into your clothes. It took over you completely."

Walker tried not to inhale the noxious fumes but found it unavoidable.

"Otherwise you'd never get the job done, and the attitude in those days was, you just do what you're told."

Walker was diagnosed with Parkinson's eight years ago. The debilitating disease cost him a marriage, his business, home, income, and ability to play his beloved guitar.

"I was basically left with nothing," he says.

Walker read the Herald article last month that revealed the navy veteran's compensation victory after proving TCE exposure contributed to his Parkinson's.

Now, he wants to know whether he has similar grounds for compensation.

"It appears there's a proven linkage between TCE and Parkinson's, and so I'll have a shot at it," he said.

"I want to explore it but anything I get out of it will go back into Parkinson's research."

What is Parkinson's disease

•A progressive neurodegenerative condition that occurs when insufficient quantities of the chemical dopamine are produced by the brain.

•Caused by insufficient quantities of dopamine - a chemical in the brain which enables well co-ordinated movement.

•One in 500 New Zealanders has Parkinson's. 

•Average age for diagnosis is 59. Many New Zealanders are diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson's in their 30s and 40s.

•The main motor symptoms of Parkinson's are tremor (shaking), stiffness and rigidity, slowness of movement (bradykinesia). Other symptoms can include changes in mood and anxiety, poor balance and altered speech.

- Anyone needing information or support could contact Parkinson's New Zealand on 0800 473 463 or www.parkinsons.org.nz

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