Parkinson's drugs 'made me gambler, thief and gay sex fiend'

Graham Tearse in Nantes
Sunday December 9, 2007
The Observer

A French court is set to award substantial damages to a 47-year-old father-of-two with Parkinson's disease who was ruled to have been turned into a gambler and thief, with compulsive homosexual urges, by the drugs he was being treated with.
Didier Jambart, a French defence ministry employee, has been suing for damages of €400,000 after being prescribed with dopamine agonist drugs in a case that is being closely studied by lawyers representing Parkinson's sufferers in Britain, the US and Canada. Like Jambart, they claim that they were provided with minimal information about the disturbing side effects, estimated to affect up to 15 per cent of those taking the drugs.

'I could not have told this story even several months ago without breaking down,' said Jambart. 'I know of other dreadful examples here in France, including someone imprisoned as a result of their compulsive gambling, and of women who ended up prostituting themselves in mobile homes because of their sexual obsessions.' He ran up gambling debts of €130,000 while stealing from his family, friends and neighbours to fund his obsession. He even sold toys belonging to his two young sons.
Dopamine agonists, which mimic the mood chemical dopamine, are used in several branded drugs commonly prescribed for Parkinson's, a debilitating disease which affects some 120,000 people in Britain. In most cases, they successfully counter symptoms which include muscular tremors and slowness of movement.

But within a year of starting his medication, Jambart felt the first signs of what he calls 'a state of Jekyll and Hyde'. During the highs he began placing horse racing bets on the internet. But in December 2004, he made the first of three suicide attempts. The next year he began trawling gay internet sites for sexual partners whom he invited home.

'As soon as we saw him we knew immediately it was dopamine agonists,' said Philippe Damier, head of the neurology department at the Nantes CHU hospital. Jambart was given different medication and his disorders disappeared. He said: 'Without that, I would have killed myself or have ended up in prison.'

Bids for compensation in Britain were launched last month by two Parkinson's sufferers who claimed to have become gambling addicts after being prescribed Mirapexin.

that only about 25% of agonist takers, Mirapex principally, have this problem. Personally, I think that percentage is higher, but it is an understudied problem.
The majority of agonist takers get good benefit with their agonists. Mirapex should be taken at no more than 1 mg, 3 times daily, NOT the 4.5 that used the be the maximum dose.

Charlie

If Anne Frobert is up to it, I will ask her to post a summary. My understanding is that she played a major role in explaining all this to the court.

I'm glad some of the problems associated with dopamine agonists are becoming more readily available to patients and doctors.

As much as I hate the idea of litigation involving treating doctors and drug companies it gives me a warm glow to know that recognition of a parkinsonian exhibiting atypical behaviour on agonists as opposed to their previous personality is being taken seriously in the courts.

To go on an agonist and then begin shopping, gambling, online excessively. To suddenly start writing poetry or long rambling letters or be able to go a night without sleep all these and more are thankfully becoming too much of a coincidence to not be taken seriously.
Anyway Chris, good article thanks. I'll get off my soapbox now!
Lee

That's pretty interesting that you brought up other examples of compulsive behavior (such as hypergraphia and euphoric insomnia). I guess you could also say they're very similar to behaviors seen in the manic phase of the bipolar disorders (I have major depression with rare and brief hypomanias, so I can empathize with what you have written).

I think my Mirapex may have, in fact, caused me to develop hypergraphia!

Which isn't a bad thing as for now, as I'm a writer...

(Though guess I gotta watch the spending and such... been on Mirapex for 6 months and so far no issues in that department.)