Consensus Statement on the Role of Acute Dopaminergic Challenge in Parkinson's Disease

Available evidence on the practice of acute phar- macological challenge tests in parkinsonian patients was re- viewed by a committee of experts, which achieved a general consensus. The published data deal mainly with the acute ad- ministration of levodopa and apomorphine in Parkinson's dis- ease. Such challenge may serve different purposes, e.g., re- search, diagnosis, or tailoring of treatment. Unique protocols describing the clinical setting and practice parameters are not available. The present paper describes the scientific back- ground and supplies practical guidelines, whenever possible, to perform and evaluate acute challenge tests in parkinsonian syn- dromes. With the appropriate indication and setting, acute chal- lenge tests are useful in diagnosis and therapy of Parkinson's disease and related disorders. © 2001 Movement Disorder So- ciety.