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Video Flagged Dead

The REAL Awakenings-Oliver Sacks, L-Dopa, Sleeping Sickness

submitted by spoco2

1 decade 6 years 9 months 4 weeks ago

Science

In 1966, Oliver Sacks began working as a consulting neurologist at Beth Abraham Hospital (now Beth Abraham Health Services), a chronic care facility in the Bronx. It was here that he first encountered a group of patients, many of whom had spent decades unable to initiate movement due to the devastating effects of the 1920s sleeping sickness, encephalitis lethargica.[source]

In 1969 Sacks tried using a then new Parkinson's drug, L-dopa, with amazing results, returning these people to the 'land of the living' after they'd been in a horrendous frozen state for decades. Unfortunately the vast majority of these returned to their frozen state after the negative effects of L-Dopa (ticks,spasms etc.) began to outweigh the benefits.

The Academy Award nominated film with Robin Williams and Robert De Niro is what brought this amazing true tale to many people's knowledge.

There was a documentary made in the 70s about it, but it hasn't been publicly shown outside of small showings to predominantly medical people. Finally someone has actually posted some footage that shows the REAL patients that you will know if you love the movie as much as I, Leonard, Rose etc. Amazing to see how close they stayed to reality in that movie when it came to portraying these people.