The Vanderbilt Parkinson's Disease Center

The mission of the VPDC is to provide excellence in research, patient care, and education in Parkinson’s disease and related disorders.

Recognized as a Center of Excellence by the Parkinson’s Foundation, the VPDC is dedicated to providing the best care through a comprehensive approach that addresses the whole person and the full range of symptoms of the disease. The VPDC has the largest clinical program in the state of Tennessee and offers medical and surgical management options for patients with PD and related disorders. Faculty and staff are leaders in clinical research for groundbreaking new treatments for Parkinson’s disease. 

Parkinson’s Foundation logo

Outreach and Education

For information on outreach and educational programs, the annual “Blazing for a Cure” symposium, support groups, and exercise classes contact Kelly Arney, MSSW, Outreach Coordinator for the Parkinson Foundation Center of Excellence at Vanderbilt:

Kelly.B.Arney@VUMC.org
(615) 936-5517

For more information on regional outreach activities, visit the Parkinson's Foundation Tennessee-Kentucky website.

Research

The VPDC is actively involved in clinical trials for PD. Current clinical trials are focusing on interventions that slow the progression of PD and also treatment of motor fluctuations in PD.

For more information about participating in clinical trials in PD, please contact Ms. Jackie Harris or Ms. Nicole Jones at (615) 936-3833.

For Patients

To schedule an appointment with consulting physicians in the VPDC, please ask your primary physician or neurologist to fax (preferred) a referral to Ms. Chelsea Mundy at (615) 936-1229. The mailing address is 1161 21st Ave South, A-0118 MCN, Nashville, TN 37232. Please be aware that insurance authorization will be necessary.

More information on Parkinson’s disease is available via the Vanderbilt Health Library.

Please note: A new type of DBS device, the St. Jude Medical Infinity system has been FDA approved, but is not yet available for use. If you are being considered for DBS in the future, this device may be an option for you in the future.

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