[Treatment of progressive supranuclear palsy]

Abstract

The neuropharmacological and neurochemical features of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) are reviewed, together with the results obtained by various therapeutic trials. PSP is a neurodegenerative disease which often causes Parkinsonian symptoms but dopaminomimetic drugs have given rise to poor improvement, in spite of dopamine decrease observed in PSP patients' nigrostriatal region. The uselessness of L-DOPA therapy in PSP patients may explain the numerous failures encountered in PSP patients misdiagnosed as Parkinsonian. On the basis of the recent discovery of striatal dopaminergic receptor abnormalities and of interaction between various neurotransmitters, the authors suggest some possible therapeutic substances that might improve the outcome of the disease.