Hypokinesia in Parkinson's disease: Influence of age, disease severity, and disease duration

Background: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder associated with motor and nonmotor symptoms. Drooling, one of the nonmotor symptoms, can be present in 70–80% of patients with PD. The aim of this paper is to study the characteristics of PD patients with drooling compared to those without in terms of age, gender, disease duration, stage of the disease, swallowing difficulties, and health-related quality of life; methods: a cross-sectional study was conducted. The sample was divided into two groups: PD with drooling (n = 32) and PD without drooling (n = 30). Age, gender, disease duration and Hoehn & Yahr (H & Y) stage, Sialorrhea Clinical Scale for Parkinson’s Disease (SCS-PD), the 10-item Eating Assessment Tool (EAT-10), and the 39-item Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39) were compared between groups; Results: 62 individuals with PD, 40 men and 22 women (mean age 73 ± 8 years), were included. Overall, 32 patients reported drooling, and 30 did not exhibit it. The ANCOVA found significant differences between groups for the EAT-10 score (0.83, 95% CI = 5.62–9.03; p = 0.016) and SCS-PD score (1.48, 95% CI = 0.86–6.81; p < 0.001). Analysis of the PDQ-39 scores revealed no significant differences between groups for the PDQ-39 total score (p > 0.057) and in all subscales. The inclusion of gender, age, disease duration, and H & Y as covariates did not influence the results (all p > 0.05). Conclusions: drooling is related to swallowing difficulties assessed with EAT-10 but not with health-related quality of life assessed with PDQ-39 in PD patients with drooling compared to PD patients without it. Age, gender, duration of the disease, and the H & Y state of PD patients with and without drooling seem to be similar.

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Self-Perception of Voice and Swallowing Handicap in Parkinson’s Disease

Journal of Parkinson s Disease ◽

10.3233/jpd-212621 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-8

Author(s):

Alice K. Silbergleit ◽

Lonni Schultz ◽

Kendra Hamilton ◽

Peter A. LeWitt ◽

Christos Sidiropoulos

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Disease Duration ◽

Self Perception ◽

Functional Aspects ◽

Dysphagia Handicap Index ◽

Relationship Of ◽

The Relationship

Background: Hypokinetic dysarthria and dysphagia are known features of Parkinson’s disease; however, self-perception of their handicapping effects on emotional, physical, and functional aspects of quality of life over disease duration is less understood. Objective: 1) Based upon patient self-perception, to determine the relationship of the handicapping effects of dysphagia and dysphonia with time since diagnosis in individuals with Parkinson’s disease; 2)To determine if there is a relationship between voice and swallowing handicap throughout the course of Parkinson’s disease. Method: 277 subjects completed the Dysphagia Handicap Index and the Voice Handicap Index. Subjects were divided into three groups based on disease duration: 0–4 years, 5–9 years, and 10 + years. Results: Subjects in the longer duration group identified significantly greater perceptions of voice and swallowing handicap compared to the shorter duration groups. There was a significant positive correlation between the DHI and VHI. Conclusion: Self-perception of swallowing and voice handicap in Parkinson’s disease are associated with later stages of disease and progress in a linear fashion. Self-perception of voice and swallowing handicap parallel each other throughout disease progression in Parkinson’s disease. Individuals may be able to compensate for changes in voice and swallowing early while sensory perceptual feedback is intact. Results support early targeted questioning of patient self-perception of voice and swallowing handicap as identification of one problem indicates awareness of the other, thus creating an opportunity for early treatment and maintenance of swallowing and communication quality of life for as long as possible.

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