[Differential diagnosis of atypical Parkinsonian syndromes]

Atypical Parkinson syndromes are distinguished from idiopathic Parkinson disease by insufficient or missing response to dopaminergic replacement therapy and therefore they have significantly unfavorable prognoses. Early differential diagnosis is very important for the patient. It enables the therapist to give suitable consults, to avoid unnecessary or inappropriate therapy, which are not free of medication side effects and furthermore facilitates the selection of adapted symptomatically medical and physical measures of treatment. In case of future development of neuroprotective or causally therapy strategies correct diagnosis will allow an early start of therapy The differential diagnosis separation of the three clinical pictures from the idiopathic Parkinson disease with clinical criteria might be difficult in the early stage of disease. Additional neuroimaging and nuclear medical investigations may support the clinical probable diagnosis.