Background Information
Michael S. Okun, M.D. is Chair of Neurology, Adelaide Lackner Professor, and Executive Director of the Norman Fixel Institute for Neurological Diseases at the University of Florida Health College of Medicine. He received his M.D. with honors from the University of Florida and, subsequently, was fellowship trained at Emory University before establishing the movement disorders program at the University of Florida.
Dr. Okun has an active research career exploring non-motor basal ganglia brain features and currently holds two NIH R01 grants and several foundation grants exploring various aspects of deep brain stimulation and neuromodulation. Dr. Okun has been an integral part of some of the pioneering studies exploring the cognitive, behavioral, and mood effects of brain stimulation and since 2005 his laboratory has been working to uncover the electrical brain signals associated with human tic.
Among the world’s foremost experts in Parkinson’s disease as well as Tourette syndrome, Dr. Okun maintains an active research program and clinical practice, and has published over 400 peer-reviewed articles. He is also a poet (Lessons From the Bedside, 1995), and his book, Parkinson’s Treatment: 10 Secrets to a Happier Life, has been translated into over 20 languages. Dr. Okun has served as the National Medical Director for the Parkinson’s Foundation since 2006, and was recognized in a 2015 White House ceremony by the Obama administration as a Champion of Change for Parkinson’s Disease.
Dr. Okun writes a blog called parkinsonsecrets.com. You may follow him on Twitter @MichaelOkun.
Five Questions
How did you decide to become a neurologist, and especially a movement disorder specialist?
My aim in life was to be a history teacher, but in college, I found that there were not many academic jobs in this area and I decided that I would become a black bag family practice type of doctor. When I entered medical school, it is probably fair to say that I could not tell you the difference between a neurologist and a neurosurgeon, but when I was exposed to neurology and the brain I fell in love. The rest, as they say, is history.
What are the more significant challenges for treating patients who have Parkinson’s, and how do we best meet these challenges?
I think of the Parkinson’s challenges in 3 buckets. First, develop symptomatic therapies. I think the levodopa resistant symptoms that emerge following disease progression have been the most challenging (e.g. walking, talking, thinking and other non-motor symptoms). The second bucket is to develop therapies to slow disease progression; and so far, we have come up empty. The third bucket is the cure bucket and we are farthest from this goal. However, we will most likely see precision medicine approaches to some of the genetic causes of Parkinson’s in the near future.
What gives you hope with respect to better Parkinson’s treatments and outcomes?
I have a lot of hope and that is perhaps why I wrote Parkinson’s Treatment: 10 Secrets to a Happier Life which was translated into 20 languages. We are already moving the needle on meaningful symptomatic therapies and we are seeing advances in neuroimmunology, neuroinflammation, the microbiome, drug development and new devices. Additionally we are closer to a biomarker to measuring disease progression over time. This advance will decrease the number of patients needed for each clinical trial and this will move us faster toward meaningful therapies.
What has surprised you most about working with those who have Parkinson’s?
Persons with Parkinson’s disease have shown me that it is possible to have a meaningful life and a happy life despite a chronic disease. In fact, some people tell me their life is in better focus after the diagnosis. Additionally, groups like the PDAvengers have embraced our recent book Ending Parkinson’s Disease and I believe the community is ready to meet the challenge, like we did for polio and HIV.
What wisdom would you offer someone wanting to know how best to live with this disease?
We wrote another book that was just published called Living with Parkinson’s Disease (Robert Rose, 2020). The book has lots of tips and recipes for success. The four words You have Parkinson’s disease should not define your journey or take away the possibility for a happy life. Too many people become depressed and demoralized following the diagnosis and I wish they could meet all of the people I have met who have happy and meaningful lives. Read our blog at parkinsonsecrets.com
_______
Thank you, Dr. Okun, for speaking with PD Wise.