Chapter 496 - Monitoring

On 7th June the Duodopa pump was set to 7.0 mL/hr daytime flow rate, 2.2 night time flow rate and a Morning Dose of 1.0. During the week following these changes she experienced 12C degrees differences between her feet, minor panic attacks, cupboard sorting sessions.

Fitbit Chart Thursday 14th June 2018

I think I mentioned in an earlier post that she attended a PD Clinic at West Beer on the 27th June when no further advice was given about dose rates. On that day she returned from West Beer with an abscessed molar which was extracted the following day. The FitBit chart for the next day, Thursday 28th June, is remarkable! For a person who was referred some years ago by a local dentist to a children's dentist down in Hot Air City because he was unable to cope with her PD symptoms, this chart shows that she had NO dyskinesias while enduring a tooth extraction and what is more, her leg movements were almost negligible for the remainder of that day.

Fitbit Chart Thursday 28th June 2018

Yet the following day her leg dyskinesias returned to "normal" as seen below.

                                                Fitbit Chart Friday 29th June 2018

She returned to the dentist on Thursday 26th July for a check-up and clean. Three  fillings were found in need of repair so she returned on the following Thursday 2nd August to have that work done (see chart further down). Note that I had lowered the Duodopa dose rates from mid July , without reference to Dr F, because I decided her dose rates were too high causing excessive dyskinesia. Note that the following charts show the periods for specific flow rates, thus making for easier interpretation.

FitBit Chart Thursday 26th July

The day following the teeth check-up and clean we drove up the road for lunch. See the following Chart. Perhaps stress of being in a public place for lunch and my driving home in traffic caused her dyskinesias during the afternoon?

FitBit Chart Friday 27th July

The following chart shows her dyskinesias on a day on which we did not leave the house.

FitBit Chart Sunday 29th July

The following chart, Thursday 2nd August, again shows her lack of reaction, in terms of dyskinesia,  to the repair of three fillings. After we returned home, I wheeled her in the wheel chair to the ladies' "sewing circle" at our local hall. Beginning at lunch time until after she was in bed her dyskinesias were bad.

FitBit Chart Thursday 2nd August

Then the following day Friday 3rd August, she was calmer, and only having done some mild exercises guided by a Wild Dog carer.

FitBit Chart Friday 3rd August

There must be a message here somewhere in my crude data gathering.

She seems to have abandoned a previous quilt that she had been "fixing" for quite a while and has begun "finishing" another, incomplete, from a long time ago, by attaching lace around it. She is forever frustrated by dropping pins and needles, for this work is being done by hand. I'm beginning to think that this hand work is too stressful (frustrating?) for her.