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Novel Approaches to Optimization of Levodopa Therapy for Parkinson’s Disease

  • Movement Disorders (S Fox, Section Editor)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Levodopa (LD) is the most effective medication to treat Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, motor fluctuations and drug-induced dyskinesia compromise the long-term success of levodopa therapy in PD. These response complications are due, at least in part, to fluctuating LD plasma levels (as a result of erratic gastric emptying, variable jejunal absorption, and most importantly, the short half-life of LD) with standard levodopa formulations. Keeping levodopa concentrations as constant as possible is the target for improving the pharmacokinetics and developing new ways of LD administration. In this article, we review novel oral and non-oral LD formulations including the ones that have successfully completed phase 3 clinical trials and have come to market and ones that are still in earlier phases of clinical development.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA

    Yasaman Kianirad

  2. Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center, Department of Neurology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Abbott Hall 11th Floor, 710 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA

    Tanya Simuni

Authors
  1. Yasaman Kianirad
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  2. Tanya Simuni
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yasaman Kianirad.

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Conflict of Interest

Yasaman Kianirad declares no conflict of interest.

Tanya Simuni has received consultancy fees from Abbvie, Harbor, Merz Inc., Navidea, UCB Pharma, US World Meds, Acadia, and Eli Lilly, speaker and consultation fees from Allergan and Lundbeck, and speaker, consultation fees, and honorarium from GE Medical and Ibsen. Dr. Simuni has also received advisory board consultation fees and research funding from IMPAX, research funding from Auspex, Biotie, and Civitas as well as a grant and consultation fees from the National Parkinson Foundation, speaker honorarium, consultant research and education grants from TEVA, and grants from the NIH and Michael J. Fox Foundation.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Movement Disorders

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Kianirad, Y., Simuni, T. Novel Approaches to Optimization of Levodopa Therapy for Parkinson’s Disease. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 16, 34 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11910-016-0635-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11910-016-0635-8

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