A third of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients suffer from an anxiety disorder at any time point (1)
- can precede or follow PD motor symptoms
- anxiety is associated with demographic, disease-related motor and non-motor features
Retrospective study (UK data) found risk of developing Parkinson’s disease (PD) was at least doubled in people with anxiety vs those without (2):
- in those with anxiety, the presence of depression, hypotension, tremor, rigidity, balance impairment, constipation, sleep disturbance, fatigue, and cognitive impairment were associated with an increased risk of developing PD
- clinical features of those who developed PD can help identify patients presenting with anxiety who are in the prodromal phase of PD
- study confirmed that depression, sleep disturbance, fatigue, cognitive impairment, hypotension, tremor, rigidity, balance impairment, and constipation are risk factors for developing PD
Reference:
- Abou Kassm S, Naja W, Haddad R, Pelissolo A. The Relationship Between Anxiety Disorders and Parkinson's Disease: Clinical and Therapeutic Issues. Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2021 Mar 3;23(4):20. Baz0-Alvarez JC et al.
- Risk of Parkinson’s disease in people with New Onset Anxiety over 50 years - Incidence and Associated Features. BJGP 21 March 2024 DOI: 10.3399/BJGP.2023.0423