Management of OFF condition in Parkinson disease

Parkinson disease (PD) impacts nearly 1 million individuals in the United States. Nearly every patient with PD will require therapy with dopamine in the form of levodopa as the disease progresses. In more advanced stages of the disease, patients will experience motor fluctuations and require adjustment to their medication regimens to maintain good control of their symptoms. During the last 10 years, several new therapeutic treatment options have come to the market to treat motor fluctuations and improve patient quality of life. Some of these agents represent additional options to previously available drug classes, such as the catechol-O-methyl transferase (COMT) inhibitor, opicapone, and monoamine-oxidase B-inhibitor (MAO-B inhibitor), safinamide, as well as new dosage forms for available therapeutics. One new agent, istradefylline, has a novel mechanism in the treatment of PD. The place in therapy for these newer therapeutic options will be explored through a series of patient cases. This article focuses on evidence-based recommendations for the use of these newer options in the management of patients experiencing OFF episodes.