Parkinson wird oft falsch diagnostiziert. Neue Tests könnten das ändern.

[One in four people](https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/news/poll-finds-quarter-people-parkinsons-are-wrongly-diagnosed) are told they have a different condition before receiving the correct Parkinson’s diagnosis, one poll reported. On the other side, nearly 42 percent of people are initially misdiagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, according to [studies](https://movementdisorders.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/mds.27485).

The lack of a definite lab or imaging test is one reason for these errors, some experts said. The diagnosis is currently based on a [visual clinical exam](https://movementdisorders.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/mds.26424) in which a physician looks for motor symptoms such as slowed movement, tremor or rigidity.

A new wave of biomarker tests could improve diagnostic accuracy in early Parkinson’s disease and even diagnose it before symptoms begin. The tests detect the presence of an abnormal form of a protein called [alpha-synuclein](https://perspectivesinmedicine.cshlp.org/content/2/2/a009399.abstract) in the cerebrospinal fluid, skin or blood. A Parkinson’s diagnosis is typically confirmed by the discovery of abnormal alpha-synuclein in the post-mortem brain.

“Initially, the clinical diagnosis of Parkinson’s is wrong, some studies say, up to half of the time. After five years, the accuracy improves, but that’s a long time for patients to wait for the more typical symptoms to arise,” said [Andrew Siderowf](https://www.med.upenn.edu/apps/faculty/index.php/g275/p15152), director of the [Parkinson Disease and Movement Disorders Center](https://www.med.upenn.edu/pdmdc/) at the University of Pennsylvania. “So, there’s a need for better diagnosis, and alpha-synuclein testing can help with that.”

Read more here: [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2024/10/10/parkinsons-tests-alpha-synuclein/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2024/10/10/parkinsons-tests-alpha-synuclein/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com)