Background: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common and fastest-growing neurodegenerative disease in the world. Patients with PD may experience a variety of motor and non-motor symptoms that require appropriate management. This review aims to provide an overview of the current diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for PD.


Methods: Articles for this narrative review were selected through searches of PubMed database. The review synthesizes information by critically evaluating high-quality review/original articles and considering new strategies.


Results: Despite technological advances in recent years, PD remains primarily diagnosed through clinical evaluation. Physicians should suspect Parkinsonism syndrome in patients presenting with bradykinesia, resting tremor, and/or muscle rigidity. A thorough assessment is necessary to confirm the diagnosis of PD, taking into account signs and symptoms that support or contradict it. Managing PD requires a holistic approach that addresses both motor and non-motor symptoms. Current pharmacotherapeutic agents for PD primarily provide symptomatic relief. The mainstay of oral treatment for motor symptoms is the combination of Levodopa with peripheral decarboxylase inhibitors. For non-motor symptoms, various medical and rehabilitative treatments have been proposed.


Conclusion: The diverse signs and symptoms of PD emphasize the physician's role in both diagnosis and treatment. Currently, the gold standard for diagnosing PD is clinical evaluation. Further studies are needed to develop objective measures for diagnosing and monitoring the disease. While various therapeutic strategies have been established for both motor and non-motor symptoms of PD, there is an urgent need for more clinical trials focused on disease-modifying therapies for this relentlessly progressive disorder.