Objective: This study aimed to investigate the long-term effectiveness of amantadine in patients with PD.

Background: Amantadine has been used in the symptomatic treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD), buy it is only known to be effective in the early months except in some studies.

Method: Of the 54 drug naïve patients who were started on amantadine for a 3-year study to examine whether amantadine prevents development of dyskinesia, 30 patients who were still on amantadine after a mean follow up of 8 years were enrolled in this study. At baseline, Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), Freezing of Gait Questionnaire (FOGQ), Non-motor Symptom Scale (NMSS), and Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire 39 (PDQ39) were assessed. Then, the participants were asked to discontinue amantadine. Clinical evaluations were repeated at 4- and 8-week follow-ups.

Results: Twenty-four patients presented with various motor and non-motor symptoms after amantadine discontinuation, which improved reintroduction of amantadine. However, 6 patients reported no worsening after discontinuing amantadine for up to eight weeks.

Conclusion: Twenty-four patients presented with various motor and non-motor symptoms after amantadine discontinuation, which improved reintroduction of amantadine. However, 6 patients reported no worsening after discontinuing amantadine for up to eight weeks.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/amantadine-is-effective-long-term-in-parkinsons-disease/