Which medication is used to treat parkinsonism as an extrapyramidal symptom?

Which medication is used to treat parkinsonism as an extrapyramidal symptom?

• A. Benztropine
• B. Haloperidol
• C. Risperidone
• D. Clozapine

Answer: (A)

When antipsychotics block dopamine in the nigrostriatal pathway, acetylcholine becomes relatively dominant in the striatum, producing parkinsonian features such as tremor, rigidity, and slowed movement. Benztropine is a central antimuscarinic that blocks muscarinic receptors in the CNS, reducing acetylcholine activity and helping restore the dopaminergic–cholinergic balance. This directly mitigates the motor symptoms of extrapyramidal parkinsonism, making benztropine the medication used to treat this specific EPS. (The other drugs listed are antipsychotics themselves or have less effect on these motor symptoms and do not serve as the treatment for EPS.)

When antipsychotics block dopamine in the nigrostriatal pathway, acetylcholine becomes relatively dominant in the striatum, producing parkinsonian features such as tremor, rigidity, and slowed movement. Benztropine is a central antimuscarinic that blocks muscarinic receptors in the CNS, reducing acetylcholine activity and helping restore the dopaminergic–cholinergic balance. This directly mitigates the motor symptoms of extrapyramidal parkinsonism, making benztropine the medication used to treat this specific EPS. (The other drugs listed are antipsychotics themselves or have less effect on these motor symptoms and do not serve as the treatment for EPS.)