Altered somatosensory processing in Parkinson's disease and modulation by dopaminergic medications

BACKGROUND: Somatosensory abnormalities contribute to the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD). The goal of this study was to identify abnormalities in the tactile-evoked activation of the somatosensory and motor cortices in PD, and in a sensorimotor circuit that traverses both of these cortical loci. The second goal was to investigate the impact of dopaminergic medication on these measures. METHODS: Individuals with PD (n = 10, age …