If you are you like me with tremor being the main complain, you would be interested in the following:
http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retri...22510X06002358

Abstract
It is generally accepted that patients with a tremor-dominant type of idiopathic Parkinson's disease progress more slowly than the ones with the rigid-akinetic type. On the other hand successful treatment of Parkinsonian tremor is a challenge. German neurologists use anticholinergics, budipine, β-blockers, clozapine, dopaminergic substances and for most severe cases deep brain stimulation. Budipine is an enigma because its main mode of action is still unknown, although it is mostly listed under glutamate antagonists. There is however no other anti-Parkinsonian drug available with such a broad spectrum of action as shown for budipine. Budipine has been studied in open and double-blind studies as monotherapy and adjunct therapy. In both instances the drug showed beneficial effects to the patients. It may well be that the non-dopaminergic mode of action of budipine is helpful even for patients who are on stable medication. When 3 years ago reports on budipine-induced prolongation of the QT interval in the ECG emerged larger trials were stopped and nowadays there are strict rules on how to use budipine. Nonetheless, budipine in our hands is a most useful and safe drug to treat tremor and other main symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

Imad

Thank you for sharing this! I'm lucky in the sense that my tremor has tremendous response to Sinemet. Is Budipine a drug developed just for PD or is it used primarily to treat other conditions? It's so frustrating to hear of these drugs that have benefit only to see them unavailable to most of us. This drug was in clinical trials back in 1999- what in the heck has happened to it? What pharmaceutical co. has produced it?

Laura

Budipine is manufactured by a German Pharamaceutical Company (budipine (Parkinsan®: Byk Gulden Lomberg and Lundbeck). It is not recommended for persons with cardiac problems, diabeties and numerous other problems to many to mention. The cure may be worse than the disease.

Search for "Budipine" with "Pharma".

Vicky

Two more items on budipine:

from 1986
http://www.springerlink.com/content/q65m76n526027107/

from 1999 (see item #2)

http://apps.who.int/medicinedocs/fr/d/Jh1466e/2.6.html#Jh1466e.2.6

It seems to me that with screening for contraindications, budipine could offer another choice that might add one more stop on the way to DBS.

Kathleen

Byk Gulden Lomberg and Lundbeck

Vicky