MDS 2009: Creativity Linked to Dopamine Agonists in Parkinson's Disease

Medscape, by Pauline Anderson
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/704327?src=rss

June 12, 2009 — French researchers have shown a link between creativity and dopamine-agonist therapy in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Their study shows that when dopamine-agonist therapy is drastically reduced following the start of deep-brain stimulation, creativity seems to disappear.

The research was presented during the Movement Disorder Society's 13th International Congress of Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders, in Paris, France.

"You usually hear just the negative things about dopamine agonists — about the gambling and about the spending money," said Alina Batir MD, from the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire (CHU) de Grenoble, in France, who led the research team. "We wanted to show that there are also good things that happen with dopamine agonists."

Emerging Creativity

PD is characterized by loss of cognitive function such as flexibility, conceptualization, and visuospatial abilities, the researchers write. Creativity arises out of such cognitive skills and therefore should be lost in PD, they note, but case studies have documented the emergence of creativity enhancement in patients with Parkinson's disease.