Hirnsonografie, Riechtestung und motorische Testverfahren in der Frühdiagnose des idiopathischen Parkinson-Syndroms

The early diagnosis of idiopathic Parkinson's disease, preferably already at premotor disease stages, promises a greater benefit of upcoming neuroprotective therapies. While genetic, biochemical, radiotracer and other specialised imaging methods have their specific place value in the diagnostic confirmation of a suspected premotor Parkinson's disease, for the broad screening of risk populations non-invasive, low-cost diagnostic methods are more suitable. The present article gives an overview on the results of recently published studies and of our own investigations on the use of transcranial brain sonography, olfactory testing and motor assessment tools including their combined use for the detection of individuals at high risk for the later development of Parkinson's disease.