Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's Disease
   James Parkinson (1755-1824) was an English surgeon who first described the condition in a paper published in 1817, An Essay on the Shaking Palsy. The disease is known as shaking palsy or paralysis agitans, a literal translation of the Latin.
   Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder of the nervous system characterized by slowness of voluntary movements, muscular rigidity, tremor of resting muscles, a masklike facial expression, stooped posture, and a small-stepped walk without the normal arm swing. Parkinson was also one of the first to describe the disease of appendicitis and to point out that the perforation of the appendix may be a cause of death.
   Despite all his medical research, he found time for politics and was elected to the House of Parliament. He fought for universal suffrage and was concerned about health care and the rights of the insane. He became so involved in politics that he was suspected of participating in a proposed plot to assassinate George III in the theater by means of a poisoned dart, the so-called "pop-gun plot." He was examined before the privy council and was found not guilty of complicity.

Dictionary of eponyms. . 2013.

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  • Parkinson's disease — Parkinson s Parkinson s, Parkinson s disease Parkinson s diseaseprop. n. A disease causing {parkinsonism}, a degenerative nervous disorder; sometimes used loosely as a synonym for parkinsonism. More precisely, parkinson s disease is the term for… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Parkinson's disease — ► NOUN ▪ a progressive disease of the brain and nervous system marked by involuntary trembling, muscular rigidity, and slow, imprecise movement. DERIVATIVES Parkinsonism noun. ORIGIN named after the English surgeon James Parkinson (1755 1824) …   English terms dictionary

  • Parkinson's disease — [pär′kin sənz] n. [after James Parkinson (1755 1824), Eng physician] a degenerative disease of later life, characterized by a rhythmic tremor and muscular rigidity, caused by degeneration in the basal ganglia of the brain …   English World dictionary

  • Parkinson's disease — 1877, from Fr. maladie de Parkinson (1876), named for English physician James Parkinson (1755 1824), who described it (1817) under the names shaking palsy and paralysis agitans …   Etymology dictionary

  • Parkinson's disease — Par|kin|son s dis|ease [ parkınsənz dı,ziz ] noun uncount a serious illness that affects your nerves and makes you shake and move slowly. It mainly affects older people. Parkinson s disease is often simply called Parkinson s …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • Parkinson's disease — UK [ˈpɑː(r)kɪnsənz dɪˌziːz] / US [ˈpɑrkɪnsənz dɪˌzɪz] noun [uncountable] medical a serious illness that affects your nerves and makes you shake and move slowly. It mainly affects older people. Parkinson s disease is often simply called Parkinson… …   English dictionary

  • Parkinson's disease — Palsy Pal sy, n.; pl. {Palsies}. [OE. palesie, parlesy, OF. paralesie, F. paralysie, L. paralysis. See {Paralysis}.] (Med.) Paralysis, complete or partial. See {Paralysis}. One sick of the palsy. Mark ii. 3. [1913 Webster] {Bell s palsy},… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Parkinson's disease and hallucinations —    The eponym Parkinson s disease refers to the British physician James Parkinson (1755 1824), who has been credited with being the first to describe the concomitant disease in 1817. The eponym itself was coined during the 1870s by the French… …   Dictionary of Hallucinations

  • Parkinson's Disease Society of the UK — The Parkinson’s Disease Society of the UK is a British medical research charity dedicated to the curing of Parkinson s disease.ee also* Parkinson s diseaseExternal links* [http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/ Official site] …   Wikipedia

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