Review of phosphatidylserines health benefits in Parkinson’s disease and students survey

The goal of this study is two folds: to conduct a literature review of the beneficial use of phosphatidylserine in Parkinson’s Disease (PD) and to determine the knowledge base and opinion of pharmacy students. The literature search that was conducted revealed there are only very few clinical studies found that show the beneficial effect of phosphatidylserine in PD. The students’ survey conducted was among 42 first-year professional pharmacy students. The goal was to gain insight into if they had knowledge of the supplement phosphatidylserine in PD. The survey data was analyzed using SPSS software. Results show that the participants have limited overall knowledge of the topic. The results from the opinion questions also varied highly among the participants. Demographic factors of age, educational level, and work experiences affected the outcome significantly. For example, the higher the age, education level, and number of years worked the more likely the participant believed phosphatidylserine would help with the treatment of PD. A few studies have shown the use of supplements is beneficial for cognitive disorders; however, none are showing the knowledge status of this usage amongst healthcare professionals. Based on studies reviewed, phosphatidylserine may be beneficial in slowing the progression of PD. That may be one of the reasons for the students’ limited knowledge shown in this study.