Bikes and Ladders

Bikes and Ladders
There are no symptoms when he's working. He climbs ladders and walks on roofs. When he comes home he freezes between doorways, as he does at the movies. He and his wife wait to be among the last to exit, to avoid the rush of people. He comments he doesn't sleep much, but it doesn't bother him. His energy level is high. It's been ten years since his diagnosis and his gait appears unaffected by the illness now; he has a natural arm swing and his steps are fluid. I ask the doctor whether he questions the diagnosis, and he says no. The patient responds to levodopa. The only troublesome time is around four in the morning after a bowl of cereal when the medication never seems effective; he shuffles. The doctor asks if he pours milk in the bowl. He does.

Milk protein is an especially competitive amino acid, and competes with levodopa for space on receptors. Other proteins will have a similar action, making levodopa much less effective. It's hard to fathom the patient doesn't know this. Both indicate this is the first time they have heard dietary proteins can interfere with uptake of the medication. The clinical coordinator nods and mentions this is something a support group can be helpful with. She is in the process of setting up a support group for patients in their area, and she gathers their contact information.

The next patient has had the illness since his mid thirties. He sits with his right shoulder drawn up towards his ear as his left hand flails and the right hand is stuck in a dystonic spasm. He recounts a story of hospitalization after falling backwards in his yard. They gave me morphine, he notes. The doctor raises his eyebrows and asks whether he liked the sensation. No, he thought they were trying to put him to sleep. They did x-rays of his chest after listening to his lungs. He had six x-rays, they only needed to take two, he relays indignantly. They put him on a course of several antibiotics, with names this long- he gestures a distance of about a foot. This is his worst nightmare; he will die in a hospital of pneumonia. He was strapped to a gurney, journeying into the belly of the hospital deep underground with patients lining the hallways all waiting for testing. Before they let him go, they made him sign a paper promising to take another two bags of IV antibiotics. He is in the midst of writing an angry letter to the hospital- a lawyer still.

The caregiver accompanying him is blond and well dressed, and has pink lipstick. Her face is pleasant and her demeanor quiet but assertive. She makes notes while the clinician speaks. Asking him to clarify what symptoms of an "off" episode look like. The answer is complicated because the patient experiences wearing off symptoms in one arm with dyskinesia on the opposing side. Learning about Parkinson's will be rough with this patient as the model.

He wants to ride his new bike, it has two wheels, not three, as the doctor would have preferred. It was lightning when it arrived, but he had to try it out before the rain began. The pretty caregiver found him a block away frozen in the pouring rain.