http://www.myFCMG.com First Choice Medical Group 709 S. Harbor City Blvd., Melbourne, Florida 321-725-2225 This medical minute is brought to you by First Choice Medical Group, featuring Dr. Richard Newman, board-certified neurologist with First Choice. Today's topic is Parkinson's disease. This was described almost 200 years ago as a shaking palsy. Typical symptoms of Parkinson's disease include shaking of the hands and sometimes of the feet, difficulty walking, loss of balance, short steps, stiffness in the limbs, and slowing of the movements. Parkinson's disease patients should be evaluated at their first signs, and intervention should be as early as possible. Parkinson's disease is a very common condition. I've taken care of in excess of 1,000 patients in my career. There is an estimated 350,000 to 500,000 people in the United States with this condition. Better treatments are coming along, but it's important to make a diagnosis early, make it correctly, and intervene appropriately.