Parkinson's disease, first described nearly 200 years ago by a British physician for whom the disease is named (and who dubbed it the "shaking palsy"), is widely thought to show abnormalities in the basal parts of the brain - causing the characteristic tremors, stiffness of the limbs and poor balance.

Now new research led by John Caviness, M.D., Professor of Neurology at Mayo Clinic in Arizona, suggests that the cerebral cortex of the brain is also responsible for significant abnormal muscle activity in Parkinson's disease. The study results were published in the October 2005 edition of Movement Disorders Journal.

Parkinson's disease, part of a group of conditions known as motor system disorders, is characterized by tremor of the hands and arms, as well as stiffness of the limbs and slowness of movement.MORE