The 6th annual World Brain Day was be dedicated to raising awareness for Parkinson’s Disease, with the WFN working with over 122 global organisations for improved patient care, education, and research for those living with Parkinson’s Disease and their caregivers.
Digital Health Organization (DHO) group managing director, Nathan Thynne, said he appreciates the work that World Brain Day has done over the past six years.
“We are really on the cusp of what brain health means in a bigger picture moving forward,” Thynne said.
“When you look at what WFN have done with World Brain Day, they started off with prevention, and that’s really what the key part of brain health really is.
“It’s not necessarily just about understanding and rehabilitating, it’s also about preventing.
“The earlier we can understand, diagnose and treat brain health, it really does go a huge way in the long-term.
“A lot of brain health concerns are very preventable and curable if you have an early diagnose and a good treatment plan, and that’s what DHO is all about.
“We have Virtual Reality (VR) technology that can identify brain health and help in the decision-making for medical practitioners in making diagnoses or treatment plans.
“The symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease show up very early through our products and through the understanding of eye movements and brain functionality; before what we consider the ‘normal’ symptoms of Parkinson’s.
“The movements of the eyes, which also relates to brain functionality through the VR technology, it actually does identify Parkinson’s very early.
“This can alleviate so much financial burden on the broader healthcare system, but it also gives people the ability to treat it earlier, and therefore have a clearly better quality of life,” he said.
World Brain Day chair, Tissa Wijeratne, said the WFN used World Brain Day on July 22 to host a free webinar with leading neurologists, patient advocates, and Parkinson’s Disease experts.
“Parkinson’s Disease affects people of all ages, including one in 100 people over the age of 60,” Wijeratne said.
“The prevalence of this disease is on the rise, making our actions today vital to improving the lives of those who have been and will be diagnoses, particularly during this global health crisis.
“Parkinson’s Disease affects more than 7 million people around the globe, that’s nearly equivalent to the entire population of New York City.
“Our goal is to raise awareness for Parkinson’s Disease and its impact on society in an effort to improve access to quality neurological care and life-changing treatments,” he said.
WFN president, William Carroll, said the WFN worked with patients, caregivers, and loved ones around the globe to share their stories about Parkinson’s on social media through the use of the hashtags #WorldBrainDay and #WBD2020.
“Brain health has never been more vital or relevant,” Carroll said.
“When the world unites against this crippling movement disorder on World Brain Day, we will demonstrate the power of advocacy and awareness.
“When we all move together, we raise the voices of those impacted while uniting the world in a mission to end Parkinson’s Disease.
“The World Federation of Neurology’s World Brain Day aims to energise those with Parkinson’s Disease to drive research, improve standards of care and advocacy for the seven million people living with this disease today and those who will one day be diagnosed,” he said.
The WFN said the COVID-19 pandemic also causes further concern for patients with Parkinson’s Disease, and over the coming months, they will be working with other organisations around the world to provide vital information on how to navigate COVID-19 while living with Parkinson’s Disease.
