MDS 2023 | Levodopa and the pharmacological revolution in Parkinson’s disease

Oscar Gershanik, MD, Favaloro University, Buenos Aires, Argentina, discusses the pivotal role of levodopa in Parkinson’s disease treatment. Levodopa replenishes the diminished dopamine levels, making it the gold standard treatment despite limitations such as a short half-life and the development of motor complications. Prof. Gershanik highlights the ongoing research to improve levodopa treatment through various delivery methods and complementary drugs. Levodopa will remain the mainstay of treatment, but the focus is shifting towards disease-modifying therapies that can prevent, slow, stop, or even reverse the disease. The challenges in developing disease-modifying treatments are also discussed, including the need for biomarkers to identify the disease at an early stage and the heterogeneous nature of Parkinson’s disease. This interview took place at the 2023 International Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders in Copenhagen, Denmark.

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