A progress report on the New Zealand Multicentre Parkinson's disease trial. A comparison of low-dose treatment with bromocriptine or L-dopa.

A short-term and long-term prospective trial comparing 'low-dose' bromocriptine with L-dopa in the de novo treatment of Parkinson's disease began in 1983. One hundred and twenty-eight patients entered the trial by early 1987. One hundred and seven have remained on one drug. Statistical analysis indicates that a hundred patients in each treatment group will be necessary to avoid a type II statistical error in the comparison of these treatments.