There is no test that can tell you whether you have Parkinson's. To diagnose the disease, your doctor will probably:

If you are young, your doctor may do some blood tests to rule out other, rarer diseases.

If your primary care doctor thinks you may have Parkinson's disease, they should refer you to a specialist (this doctor could be a geriatrician or a neurologist).

The specialist may recommend you have a brain scan, such as an

 

 

 

 

 

MRI scan
The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine uses a magnetic field to create detailed pictures of the inside of the body. These pictures allow doctors to look at parts of the body in three-dimensional images.

 

 

 

 

 

MRI. Scans provide images of the inside of your brain to help your doctor rule out other problems or diseases.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Lang AE, Lozano AM.
Parkinson's disease.
New England Journal of Medicine. 1998; 339: 1044-1053.

 

 

 

 

 

¹

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Langston JW, Widner H, Goetz CG, et al.
Core assessment program for intracerebral transplantations (CAPIT).
Movement Disorders. 1992; 7: 2-13.

 

 

 

 

 

² Different types of brain scan give different information.

These use magnetism to take pictures of your brain. They are good at showing up damaged areas of your brain. The results of these scans can help doctors decide if you have Parkinson's or if your symptoms are because of something else (like a stroke, for example). You lie still inside the scanner. It looks like a large tube and is quite noisy. Tell the staff if you don't like enclosed spaces, as they can help you. For example, they may give you a panic button to hold in your hand during the scan. If you're feeling too panicky to stay in the scanner, you press the button and the staff will let you out.

These scans use injections of radioactive chemicals to show how well different parts of your brain are working. They can help doctors tell if you have Parkinson's or another brain disease. Having a PET scan doesn't hurt. You'll have a small injection and then wait for the radioactive chemical to get to your brain. You'll then be asked to lie very still in the scanning machine while the pictures are taken. You will only be exposed to a very small amount of radioactivity, and it doesn't last long. So it isn't dangerous.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Parkinson's Disease Society.
Diagnosis and scans. Information sheet FS48.
August 2006. Available at http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/pdf/is_fs48_Datscan_06.pdf (accessed 2 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

³

These scans are very similar to PET, but they use different radioactive substances.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Parkinson's Disease Society.
Diagnosis and scans. Information sheet FS48.
August 2006. Available at http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/pdf/is_fs48_Datscan_06.pdf (accessed 2 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

³ Like PET scans, they can help doctors decide if you have Parkinson's or something else.

To be diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, you should have at least two of the following three symptoms:

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Marjama-Lyons JM, Koller WC.
Parkinson's disease: update in diagnosis and symptom management.
Geriatrics. 2001; 56: 24-25.

 

 

 

 

 

⁴

Poor balance is also a symptom of Parkinson's, but this usually happens in the later stages of the disease. To learn more about symptoms, see What are the symptoms of Parkinson's disease?

Diagnosing Parkinson's in the early stages can be difficult. But it's important to get the right diagnosis. There are many illnesses with symptoms similar to those of Parkinson's, and they are treated differently. See Diseases that look like Parkinson's to learn more.

You probably don't have Parkinson's if:

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Parkinson's Disease Society.
Diagnosis and scans. Information sheet FS48.
August 2006. Available at http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/pdf/is_fs48_Datscan_06.pdf (accessed 2 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

³

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