APDA/NPF Parkinson's conference educates the young onset PD community

The American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) National Young Onset Center and the National Parkinson Foundation (NPF) Young Onset Parkinson Network are co-sponsoring a series of conferences for those living with young-onset Parkinson's disease and their caregivers. The first conference will be held in Dallas, Texas on October 23-24.

The flexible program schedule allows conference attendees to customize much of their day by selecting the speaker or activity they feel will best address their needs. Offerings will include educational sessions about medication, exercise, speech and cognitive issues, as well as opportunities for socialization and relaxation.

"The goal of this conference is to arm the young onset Parkinson's disease (PD) community with practical therapeutic knowledge," says Dr. J. Eric Ahlskog, Professor of Neurology at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Ahlskog will kick off the conference with his presentation, "Partnering with Your Doctor to Get the Most from Your Medications."

"This topic is especially important among younger people with Parkinson's disease, where treatment controversy may paralyze therapeutic decisions. We will attempt to cut through these controversies and provide succinct advice that will truly allow those with PD to partner with their clinicians," he said.

APDA and NPF agreed that an affordable registration fee was of a high priority and, with the help of many sponsors including Teva, Allsup, Vitaline CoQ10, Novartis, Ipsen and Medtronic, have been able to maintain a registration fee of $30 per person (includes all conference materials, an evening welcome reception, and a continental breakfast and lunch on conference day).

Online registration for the conference can be made at (www.youngparkinsons.org) or (www.parkinson.org). To make the program accessible to as many people as possible, segments will be Web cast live, and be available for download following the event through both Web sites.