Pharmafile Logo

Shifting the Paradigm: A New Era for Parkinson’s Care

In this episode of “Hear From Her:” Hear from two leaders at the forefront of a much-needed change in how Parkinson’s is understood, diagnosed, and treated.

- PMLiVE

Padma Mahant, MD, was working in a clinic as a movement disorder specialist when she noticed a disturbing trend. Patients eventually diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease “took several years to find their way to me,” she says. There were many misdiagnoses and multiple medication trials before finally getting correctly diagnosed.  And during that elapsed time, their Parkinson’s had progressed quite a bit. “It seemed like such a lost opportunity for early intervention,” Mahant says, “because we know from studies that starting treatment early can improve quality of life and slow the disease’s progression significantly.”

That realization was a turning point in Mahant’s career. She decided she wanted to become involved in educating clinicians about Parkinson’s symptoms during the “significant prodromal state prior to developing motor symptoms” and researching and creating a diagnostic tool for clinicians to use.

Mahant still sees patients, but now she’s also Director of Medical Affairs at CND Life Sciences, a company leading the way in advancing the care of patients facing a potential diagnosis of a neurodegenerative disease. And they have made breakthroughs: CND recently presented a sleep study that revealed a particular protein detected in 75% of Parkinson’s patients with Rapid Eye Movement Sleep Behavior Disorder but no motor symptoms. Manant says she believes “this is an opportunity to really move the needle” in terms of early intervention and towards disease modification.

Before her big career pivot, Mahant says, “one of the first people I called to say, ‘Hey, I’m thinking about making this shift and what do you think?’ Was Indu.”

Indu is Dr. Indu Subramanian, clinical professor of neurology at UCLA and director of the South West Parkinson Disease Research, Education and Clinical Care Center of Excellence. She is also board certified in Integrative medicine and co-chair of the Wellness Task Force at the Movement Disorders Society.  “As a young neurologist, I found that classic Western medicine wasn’t really serving my patients that well. So I became curious about other things,” she says.

Subramanian started her own yoga and mindfulness practices and ended up training to teach both. She also became interested in integrative medicine and alternative practices like Ayurveda and traditional Chinese medicine, and started really leaning into those things for her Parkinson’s patients, to help with the emotional distress that Parkinson’s can cause.

The image most people have of Parkinson’s, Subramanian says, is an older Caucasian man with a tremor. However, a growing body of evidence, and the stories of countless patients, challenges this outdated view.  Changing the Parkinson’s narrative, especially for women, requires not just better science, but also raising awareness about prodromal symptoms and the need for clinicians to be more proactive about early diagnosing. 

Women in a prodromal stage, for instance, often experience anxiety and constipation, but are often told their symptoms are stress-related.  Once patients understand that they are experiencing Parkinson’s type symptoms, we can teach them wellness strategies and lifestyle changes to help them live better, they say.  “Hopefully, developing those strategies early can help prevent progression.”

“I think we all went into medicine to help make other people’s lives better,” says Subramanian. “What fills my teacup time and time again is helping a patient and hearing that they’re doing better because of something that I was able to bring, uniquely as a woman perhaps. Who was able to slow down and take the time and connect, offer them something to help them feel better other than a pill or surgery.”

Hosted by Sara Thorpe, Director of Clinical Strategy at Medscape Education

Follow us for updates on upcoming podcasts and more insightful conversations.

For more information, please contact Jelena Spyropoulos.

About Medscape Education

Medscape Education (medscape.org) is the leading destination for continuous professional development, consisting of more than 30 specialty-focused destinations offering thousands of free CME and CE courses for physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals.

This content was provided by Medscape Education

Company Details

 Latest Content from  Medscape Education 

The Pulse of AI Innovation: From More Data to Better Care

At the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress, two of cardiology’s most influential voices sat down to talk about artificial intelligence at Medscape’s ‘The Pulse of AI Innovation’ event: Professor…

Next-Level Clinical Practice, Real-World Impact: Evolving Patient Simulation with the Clinical Readiness Studio

Healthcare is changing rapidly, bringing unprecedented data and complex treatment pathways to the point of care. Clinical mastery requires active experience, the confidence to make decisions when real patient outcomes…

Medscape Sponsors The John Ritter Foundation’s “Evening From the Heart”

When independent, evidence-based education directly connects with clinicians at the point of care, clinical practice changes. Driven by this vital mission, Medscape Education was proud to sponsor The John Ritter…

From Booth to Bavaria: A Recap of Impact at ESC 2026

We have officially wrapped up another year at ESC. For Medscape Education, 4 days on the ground confirmed what 3 decades of cardiovascular education have already shown: when independent, evidence-based…

Why Modern Dermatology Demands Curiosity Over Precision

In the high-stakes world of healthcare research and product development, success has long been measured by rigid definitions of precision and predictable trajectories. However, as Dr. Hawa Dumbuya, Director of…

The Heart of the Matter: Medscape Education’s Cardiology Footprint at ESC 2026

For more than 30 years, Medscape Education has built independent, accredited cardiovascular education designed around one goal: improved patient outcomes. This year at the European Society of Cardiology Congress (ESC…

More Than Pink Walls: What Women-Centric Care Actually Requires

The phrase “patient-centered care” is tossed around freely in healthcare corporate boardrooms. Yet, for more than half the population, that promise routinely fractures. In the latest episode of the Hear…

Women in Healthcare Leadership Have a Lot to Say. Medscape’s Hear From Her Wins an APEX Grand Award.

Medscape Education has been honoured with the prestigious APEX Grand Award for Publication Excellence at…

Moving Beyond the 10%: A New Era in Preterm Birth Prevention

For decades, the rate of spontaneous preterm birth in the United States has hovered stubbornly around 10%. Despite advancements in other areas of medicine, prematurity remains the second leading cause…

Medscape Education to Showcase the Impact of Neurology CME at EAN 2026

Medscape Education, the leading global provider of continuing medical education (CME), has announced its agenda for the upcoming 12th Congress of the European Academy of Neurology (EAN) 2026 in Geneva,…