Interesting(and extremely painful)side effect from Parkinson's to be aware of.

[brauncs]

I am 68 year old male who was diagnosed with Parkinson's 8 years ago. Recently I sustained an injury to my lower back/hip area that was diagnosed as a strained QL muscle. My PT told me to slow down with my workouts and physical activities so I did but I continued to have extremely painful and debilitating spasms in the area of the injury. How this ties in with my Parkinson's is I realized that when I was having an off time with my carbidopa/levodopa therapy my body would tense-up triggering a spasm in my QL muscle. After doing PT, ice/heat, lidocain shot and finally dry needling, I think it finally calmed down, YAY! Anyway, I just wanted to share this with you all just in case you ever have the misfortune of injuring your QL (Quadratus Lumborum).

Cheers, Craig

[park_bear]

Also, Parkinson's puts additional strain on the lower back due to the tendency to lean forward.

Quadratus Lumborum. credit: https://www.physio-pedia.com

[Boscoejean in reply to park_bear]

My husband with Parkinson's also has always had scoliosis which makes this strain even worse. It seems like some exercise helps but may not be as effective in strengthening the muscles in someone with Parkinson's. I have noticed that even slightly overdoing the exercise can cause some issues.

[gomelgo]

I read this and straightened up immediately. Thank you.

[CaritaP]

And, we should be aware of the fact we develop melanomas easier than other people. The risk is 2-6 times higher. I have one right now, they’re going to remove it, and I was a bit upset that nobody had informed me of this, until I started to think that if they’d told us at the beginning, all PwPs would immediately start examining their birthmarks and become paranoid. The risk exists, however.

[Boscoejean in reply to CaritaP]

The dermatologist told my husband he should have skin checks every 6 months and she did remove a questionable looking spot and everything in the perimeter of it and the perimeter testing came back good but better to be safe. It is one area where medicare and medical insurance are fairly good at covering the necessary care.

[hmm777]

I also have had repeated QL issues since my diagnosis. Foam rolling and general core strength work seem to help.

[brauncs in reply to hmm777]

Thanks for sharing. After my post I experienced another very painful spasm that lasted for 8hours or so, so I finally took a muscle relaxer and it finally subsided. I guess my brief celebration was premature. If you don't mind sharing, how long have you had your QL injury and how often do you spasm?

Thanks, Craig

[hmm777 in reply to brauncs]

I strained the left one doing heavy squats (320 lbs or something). It bugged me quite a bit for about 9 months and flares up now and again if I don't keep up with my exercise program or sit too long in unhealthy positions (e.g., in front of the TV) for too long.