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Parkinson's Disease
What Causes Parkinson's Disease?
People with Parkinson's also have loss of the nerve endings that
produce the neurotransmitter norepinephrine. Norepinephrine,
which is closely related to dopamine, is the main chemical
messenger of the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic
nervous system controls many automatic functions of the body, such
as heart rate and blood pressure. The loss of norepinephrine might
help explain several of the non-movement features of Parkinson's,
such as fatigue, irregular blood pressure, decreased gastric
motility or movement of food through the digestive tract, and
postural hypotension. Postural hypotension is a sudden drop in
blood pressure when a person stands up from a sitting or lying-down
position. It may cause dizziness, lightheadedness, and in some
cases, loss of balance or fainting.
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