Personalized Medicine and Nonmotor Symptoms in Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson´s day-clinic: which patients should be selected and what services should be offered for successful therapy?

The demographic development and the advance of intensified yet time and personnel-intensive therapeutic options constitute increasing challenges for the care of people with advanced Parkinson's disease (PD). Often, the multitude of motor and non-motor symptoms cannot be adequately addressed in an ambulatory setting The concept of a Parkinson's day clinic has been put forward to meet the requirements for these patients who not necessarily require the full medical support of an inpatient treatment and was included into the Parkinson's guidelines of the German Neurological Society as a novel and promising medical care model. While the guidelines put forward some recommendations as to which patients are most likely to benefit from treatment in a Parkinson's day clinic, it has not yet been decided which infrastructural, operational, personnel and qualitative requirements such a setting should provide. Here we provide recommendations on the basis of an expert consensus as to which patients will particularly benefit from treatment in a Parkinson´s day clinic and which services such a day clinic should address in order to provide successful therapy. Furthermore we suggest a standard operating procedure (SOP) and we give examples of patients who are suitable for treatment in a Parkinson´s day clinic.

Dual stream transformer for medication state classification in Parkinson's disease patients using facial videos

Hypomimia is a prominent, levodopa-responsive symptom in Parkinson's disease (PD). In our study, we aimed to distinguish ON and OFF dopaminergic medication state in a cohort of PD patients, analyzing their facial videos with a unique, interpretable Dual Stream Transformer model. Our approach integrated two streams of data: facial frame features and optical flow, processed through a transformer-based architecture. Various configurations of embedding dimensions, dense layer sizes, and attention heads were examined to enhance model performance. The final model, trained on 183 PD patients, attained an accuracy of 86% in differentiating between ON- and OFF-medication state. Moreover, uniform classification performance (up to 88%) was obtained across various stages of PD severity, as expressed by the Hoehn and Yahr (H&Y) scale. These values highlight the potential of our model as a non-invasive, cost-effective instrument for clinicians to remotely and accurately detect patients' response to treatment from early to more advanced PD stages.

Recognition and characterising non-motor profile in early onset Parkinson's disease (EOPD)

Early onset Parkinson's disease (EOPD) has been recently defined as a clinical entity with subjects presenting with Parkinson's disease (PD) between the ages of 21-50 and replaces the term Young Onset PD (YOPD). Presentations in this age group are somewhat different to the typical Late Onset sporadic PD (LOPD) and genetic basis may play an important role. The presentations are however, to be differentiated from other causes of juvenile onset or early onset parkinsonism, which are often driven by rare genetic, brain metal deposition, or metabolic progressive disorders with a levolevodopa unresponsive or poorly responsive phenotype. Specific genetic mutations can also underpin EOPD and include nonmotor symptoms of EOPD, which have not been studied extensively. However, some real-life comparator studies with LOPD suggest a nonmotor profile in EOPD dominated by neuropsychiatric symptoms (anxiety), pain, sexual dysfunction, and a higher risk of impulse control disorders and segregation to the recently described noradrenergic and Park-sleep nonmotor endophenotypes may occur. Awareness of the phenotypic variants and nonmotor expression will pave the way for future precision and personalised medicine.

Early identification of Parkinson's disease with anxiety based on combined clinical and MRI features

Objective

To identify cortical and subcortical volume, thickness and cortical area features and the networks they constituted related to anxiety in Parkinson's disease (PD) using structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI), and to integrate multimodal features based on machine learning to identify PD-related anxiety.

Methods

A total of 219 patients with PD were retrospectively enrolled in the study. 291 sMRI features including cortical volume, subcortical volume, cortical thickness, and cortical area, as well as 17 clinical features, were extracted. Graph theory analysis was used to explore structural networks. A support vector machine (SVM) combination model, which used both sMRI and clinical features to identify participants with PD-related anxiety, was developed and evaluated. The performance of SVM models were evaluated. The mean impact value (MIV) of the feature importance evaluation algorithm was used to rank the relative importance of sMRI features and clinical features within the model.

Results

17 significant sMRI variables associated with PD-related anxiety was used to build a brain structural network. And seven sMRI and 5 clinical features with statistically significant differences were incorporated into the SVM model. The comprehensive model achieved higher performance than clinical features or sMRI features did alone, with an accuracy of 0.88, a precision of 0.86, a sensitivity of 0.81, an F1-Score of 0.83, a macro-average of 0.85, a weighted-average of 0.92, an AUC of 0.88, and a result of 10-fold cross-validation of 0.91 in test set. The sMRI feature right medialorbitofrontal thickness had the highest impact on the prediction model.

Conclusion

We identified the brain structural features and networks related to anxiety in PD, and developed and internally validated a comprehensive model with multimodal features in identifying.

Behavioral, neural and ultrastructural alterations in a graded-dose 6-OHDA mouse model of early-stage Parkinson's disease

Studying animal models furthers our understanding of Parkinson's disease (PD) pathophysiology by providing tools to investigate detailed molecular, cellular and circuit functions. Different versions of the neurotoxin-based 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) model of PD have been widely used in rats. However, these models typically assess the result of extensive and definitive dopaminergic lesions that reflect a late stage of PD, leading to a paucity of studies and a consequential gap of knowledge regarding initial stages, in which early interventions would be possible. Additionally, the better availability of genetic tools increasingly shifts the focus of research from rats to mice, but few mouse PD models are available yet. To address these, we characterize here the behavioral, neuronal and ultrastructural features of a graded-dose unilateral, single-injection, striatal 6-OHDA model in mice, focusing on early-stage changes within the first two weeks of lesion induction. We observed early onset, dose-dependent impairments of overall locomotion without substantial deterioration of motor coordination. In accordance, histological evaluation demonstrated a partial, dose-dependent loss of dopaminergic neurons of substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). Furthermore, electron microscopic analysis revealed degenerative ultrastructural changes in SNc dopaminergic neurons. Our results show that mild ultrastructural and cellular degradation of dopaminergic neurons of the SNc can lead to certain motor deficits shortly after unilateral striatal lesions, suggesting that a unilateral dose-dependent intrastriatal 6-OHDA lesion protocol can serve as a successful model of the early stages of Parkinson's disease in mice.

Detecting Minor Symptoms of Parkinson's Disease in the Wild Using Bi-LSTM with Attention Mechanism

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor and nonmotor impairment with various implications on patients' quality of life. Since currently available therapies are only symptomatic, identifying individuals with prodromal, preclinical, or early-stage PD is crucial, as they would be ideal candidates for future disease-modifying therapies. Our analysis aims to develop a robust model for accurate PD detection using accelerometer data collected from PD and non-PD individuals with mild or no tremor during phone conversations. An open-access dataset comprising accelerometer recordings from 22 PD patients and 11 healthy controls (HCs) was utilized. The data were preprocessed to extract relevant time-, frequency-, and energy-related features, and a bidirectional long short-term memory (Bi-LSTM) model with attention mechanism was employed for classification. The performance of the model was evaluated using fivefold cross-validation, and metrics of accuracy, precision, recall, specificity, and f1-score were computed. The proposed model demonstrated high accuracy (98%), precision (99%), recall (98%), specificity (96%), and f1-score (98%) in accurately distinguishing PD patients from HCs. Our findings indicate that the proposed model outperforms existing approaches and holds promise for detection of PD with subtle symptoms, like tremor, in the wild. Such symptoms can present in the early or even prodromal stage of the disease, and appropriate mobile-based applications may be a practical tool in real-life settings to alert individuals at risk to seek medical assistance or give patients feedback in monitoring their symptoms.

Time perception reflects individual differences in motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease

Dopaminergic signaling in the striatum has been shown to play a critical role in the perception of time. Decreasing striatal dopamine efficacy is at the core of Parkinson's disease (PD) motor symptoms and changes in dopaminergic action have been associated with many comorbid non-motor symptoms in PD. We hypothesize that patients with PD perceive time differently and in accordance with their specific comorbid non-motor symptoms and clinical state. We recruited patients with PD and compared individual differences in patients' clinical features with their ability to judge millisecond to second intervals of time (500ms-1100ms) while on or off their prescribed dopaminergic medications. We show that individual differences in comorbid non-motor symptoms, PD duration, and prescribed dopaminergic pharmacotherapeutics account for individual differences in time perception performance. We report that comorbid impulse control disorder is associated with temporal overestimation; depression is associated with decreased temporal accuracy; and PD disease duration and prescribed levodopa monotherapy are associated with reduced temporal precision and accuracy. Observed differences in time perception are consistent with hypothesized dopaminergic mechanisms thought to underlie the respective motor and non-motor symptoms in PD, but also raise questions about specific dopaminergic mechanisms. In future work, time perception tasks like the one used here, may provide translational or reverse translational utility in investigations aimed at disentangling neural and cognitive systems underlying PD symptom etiology.

One Sentence Summary

Quantitative characterization of time perception behavior reflects individual differences in Parkinson's disease motor and non-motor symptom clinical presentation that are consistent with hypothesized neural and cognitive mechanisms.

The definition of precision medicine in neurodegenerative disorders and the one disease-many diseases tension

Precision medicine is a patient-centered approach that aims to translate new knowledge to optimize the type and timing of interventions for the greatest benefit to individual patients. There is considerable interest in applying this approach to treatments designed to slow or halt the progression of neurodegenerative diseases. Indeed, effective disease-modifying treatment (DMT) remains the greatest unmet therapeutic need in this field. In contrast to the enormous progress in oncology, precision medicine in the field of neurodegeneration faces multiple challenges. These are related to major limitations in our understanding of many aspects of the diseases. A critical barrier to advances in this field is the question of whether the common sporadic neurodegenerative diseases (of the elderly) are single uniform disorders (particularly related to their pathogenesis) or whether they represent a collection of related but still very distinct disease states. In this chapter, we briefly touch on lessons from other fields of medicine that might be applied to the development of precision medicine for DMT in neurodegenerative diseases. We discuss why DMT trials may have failed to date, and particularly the importance of appreciating the multifaceted nature of disease heterogeneity and how this has and will impact on these efforts. We conclude with comments on how we can move from this complex disease heterogeneity to the successful application of precision medicine principles in DMT for neurodegenerative diseases.

The Dashboard Vitals of Parkinson's: Not to Be Missed Yet an Unmet Need

The vitals of Parkinson's disease (PD) address the often-ignored symptoms, which are considered either peripheral to the central core of motor symptoms of PD or secondary symptoms, which, nevertheless, have a key role in the quality of life (QoL) and wellness of people with Parkinson's (PwP) [...].

Parkinsonism associated with viral infection

There are several known causes of secondary parkinsonism, the most common being head trauma, stroke, medications, or infections. A growing body of evidence suggests that viral agents may trigger parkinsonian symptoms, but the exact pathological mechanisms are still unknown. In some cases, lesions or inflammatory processes in the basal ganglia or substantia nigra have been found to cause reversible or permanent impairment of the dopaminergic pathway, leading to the occurrence of extrapyramidal symptoms. This chapter reviews current data regarding the viral agents commonly associated with parkinsonism, such as Epstein Barr virus (EBV), hepatitis viruses, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), herpes viruses, influenza virus, coxsackie virus, and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). We present possible risk factors, proposed pathophysiology mechanisms, published case reports, common associations, and prognosis in order to offer a concise overview of the viral spectrum involved in parkinsonism.

Telemedicine as an Untapped Opportunity for Parkinson’s Nurses Training in Personalized Care Approaches

(1) Background: Parkinson nurses (PN) take over important functions in the telemedical care of person’s with Parkinson’s disease (PwPs). This requires special competencies that have so far been largely unexplored. The aim of the article is to identify competencies of PN operating in a personalized care model. (2) Methods: This study employed a qualitative approach. Based on the competency framework for telenursing, PN were asked about their competencies using a qualitative online survey. (3) Results: The results show that PN need competencies on a personal and organizational level, as well as in the relationship with PwPs. PN have developed these skills through professional exchange, training, and personal experience. In addition, both hindering and beneficial factors for the development of competencies could be identified. (4) Conclusions: Competency development for telemedical care is complex and must be designed and promoted in a targeted manner.

Wellness, sexual health, and nonmotor Parkinson's

Nonmotor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD) range from neuropsychiatric and cognitive to sleep, sensory, and genito-urinary disorders, and occur as a result of the disease process as well as due to side effects of drug treatment for PD. Sexual dysfunction is an important aspect of the nonmotor profile of Parkinson's but is rarely discussed. Sexual health is considered an integral element of holistic health, thus sexual dysfunction can also significantly impact quality of life in people with Parkinson's. The effect of sexual dysfunction of PD, both disease related and drug induced, on the concept of "wellness" of patients and their intimate partners is poorly understood, inadequately researched and a key unmet need in care and support. In this chapter we discuss the concept of "wellness" as applied to the treatment of PD, the ways in which nonmotor symptoms and other aspects of living may affect wellness in PD, and strategies for addressing sexual health utilizing a wellness model.

Caring for patients with cognitive dysfunction, fluctuations and dementia caused by Parkinson's disease

Cognitive dysfunction is one of the most prevalent non-motor symptoms in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). While it tends to worsen in the later stages of disease, it can occur at any time, with 15-20% of patients exhibiting cognitive deficits at diagnosis (Aarsland et al., 2010; Goldman and Sieg, 2020). The characteristic features of cognitive dysfunction include impairment in executive function, visuospatial abilities, and attention, which vary in severity from subtle impairment to overt dementia (Martinez-Horta and Kulisevsky, 2019). To complicate matters, cognitive dysfunction is prone to fluctuate in PD patients, impacting diagnosis and the ability to assess progression and decision-making capacity. The diagnosis of cognitive impairment or dementia has a huge impact on patient independence, quality of life, life expectancy and caregiver burden (Corallo et al., 2017; Lawson et al., 2016; Leroi et al., 2012). It is therefore essential that physicians caring for patients with PD provide education, screening and treatment for this aspect of the disease. In this chapter, we provide a practical guide for the assessment and management of various degrees of cognitive dysfunction in patients with PD by approaching the disease at different stages. We address risk factors for cognitive dysfunction, prevention strategies prior to making the diagnosis, available tools for screening. Lastly, we review aspects of care, management and considerations, including decision-making capacity, that occur after the patient has been diagnosed with cognitive dysfunction or dementia.

Personalized Assessment of Insomnia and Sleep Quality in Patients with Parkinson's Disease

Sleep disturbances are more common in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) than in the general population and are considered one of the most troublesome symptoms by these patients. Insomnia represents one of the most common sleep disturbances in PD, and it correlates significantly with poor quality of life. There are several known causes of insomnia in the general population, but the complex manifestations that might be associated with PD may also induce insomnia and impact the quality of sleep. The treatment of insomnia and the strategies needed to improve sleep quality may therefore represent a challenge for the neurologist. A personalized approach to the PD patient with insomnia may help the clinician to identify the factors and comorbidities that should also be considered in order to establish a better individualized therapeutic plan. This review will focus on the main characteristics and correlations of insomnia, the most common risk factors, and the main subjective and objective methods indicated for the assessment of insomnia and sleep quality in order to offer a concise guide containing the main steps needed to approach the PD patient with chronic insomnia in a personalized manner.

Evaluating the effects of dance on motor outcomes, non-motor outcomes, and quality of life in people living with Parkinson's: a feasibility study

BACKGROUND

Community-based dance programs for people living with Parkinson's have grown in popularity over the past two decades. Studies investigating these programs have demonstrated multidimensional benefits in motor, non-motor, and quality of life related outcomes, yet there is a need to focus on the feasibility of larger trials. The primary objective of this study was to assess the feasibility and acceptability of conducting a trial investigating dance and Parkinson's in Northern Ireland. The secondary objectives were to conduct preliminary analyses of the classes' effects and to assess the appropriateness of outcome measures for a randomized controlled trial.

METHODS

Participants were recruited through the community, Parkinson's UK, and university contacts to participate in a 12-week dance intervention inspired by the Dance for PD® model. Pre- and post-intervention, participants completed the following outcomes: MDS-UPDRS III, TUG, DT-TUG, Sensory Organization Test, MoCA, Trail Making Tests A&B, Digit Symbol Substitution Test, Digit Span, PDQ-39, FOG-Q, PHQ-9, FES-I, and an exit questionnaire (post-test only). Data were analyzed using paired samples t tests or Wilcoxon signed ranked test.

RESULTS

Ten people living with Parkinson's participated. Running a larger trial was deemed infeasible in this setting due to recruitment issues; conversely, the dance intervention was accepted by participants with all but one completing the study. Functional mobility (TUG), symptoms of depression (PHQ-9), and bodily discomfort showed improvement. All other outcomes did not. The exit questionnaire revealed that the social aspect of classes was important, and improvements in mood or mental state were cited most frequently as perceived benefits. Outcome measures were feasible, with some changes suggested for future trials.

CONCLUSIONS

This study highlighted the infeasibility of running a larger trial using this design in this setting despite demonstrating the acceptability of implementing a dance program in Northern Ireland for people living with Parkinson's. The results support existing evidence demonstrating that dance may improve functional mobility and symptoms of depression in people living with Parkinson's, though the study design and small sample size prevent the generalizability of results. The findings also support the idea that dancing has the potential to support several aspects of physical, emotional, mental, and social health.

Genetic Markers as Risk Factors for the Development of Impulsive-Compulsive Behaviors in Patients with Parkinson's Disease Receiving Dopaminergic Therapy

Impulsive–compulsive and related behavioral disorders (ICD) are drug-induced non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Recently research has focused on evaluating whether ICD could be predicted and managed using a pharmacogenetic approach based on dopaminergic therapies, which are the main risk factors. The aim of our study was to evaluate the role of candidate genes such as DBH, DRD2, MAOA, BDNF, COMT, SLC6A4, SLC6A3, ACE, DRD1 gene polymorphisms in the pathogenesis of ICD in PD. We compared patients with PD and ICD (n = 49), patients with PD without ICD (n = 36) and a healthy control group (n = 365). ICD was diagnosed using the QUIP questionnaires and specific diagnostic criteria for subtypes of ICD. Genotyping was conducted using a number of PCR techniques and SNaPshot. Statistical analysis was performed using WinPepi and APSampler v3.6 software. PCA testing was conducted using RStudio software v1.4.1106-5. The following substitutions showed statistically significant correlations with PD and ICD: DBH (rs2097629, rs1611115), DRD2 (rs6275, rs12364283, rs1076560), ACE (rs4646994), DRD1 (rs686), BDNF (rs6265), these associations are novel in Russian PD patients. Our findings suggest that polymorphisms in DBH, BDNF, DRD2, ACE genes in Russian subjects are associated with an increased risk of ICD development.

Validation and clinical value of the MANAGE-PD tool: A clinician-reported tool to identify Parkinson's disease patients inadequately controlled on oral medications

INTRODUCTION

Making Informed Decisions to Aid Timely Management of Parkinson's Disease (MANAGE-PD) is a clinician-reported tool designed to facilitate timely identification and management of patients with advancing Parkinson's disease (PD) with suboptimal symptom control while on standard therapy. The objective of this study was to evaluate the validity and clinical value of the tool.

METHODS

Driven by structured inputs from a steering committee and panel of PD experts, the tool was developed to classify patients into 3 categories. Validity and clinical value were elucidated using a two-pronged approach: (i) hypothetical patient vignettes (n = 10) developed based on the MANAGE-PD tool and rated by 17 PD specialists and 400 general neurologists (GN) and (ii) patients with PD (n = 2546) managed in real-world clinical settings. Vignette validity was based on concordance between PD experts' clinical judgement and MANAGE-PD vignette categorization. Patient-level data was used for known-group comparisons (validity) and discordant pair analysis (clinical value).

RESULTS

The tool demonstrated strong validity and clinical value among PD specialists (intraclass coefficient [ICC] 0.843; Fleiss weighted kappa [ƙ_weighted] 0.79) and GN (ICC 0.690; ƙ_weighted 0.65) using patient vignettes. MANAGE-PD also demonstrated real-world validity and clinical value based on ability to identify patients with incrementally higher clinical, economic, and humanistic PD burden across categories of the tool (p < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

MANAGE-PD demonstrated robust validity and clinical value in identifying patients with suboptimal PD symptom control. Clinical use of MANAGE-PD may complement treatment decision-making and facilitate timely and comprehensive management of patients with advancing PD.

Atremorine in Parkinson's disease: From dopaminergic neuroprotection to pharmacogenomics

Atremorine is a novel bioproduct obtained by nondenaturing biotechnological processes from a genetic species of Vicia faba. Atremorine is a potent dopamine (DA) enhancer with powerful effects on the neuronal dopaminergic system, acting as a neuroprotective agent in Parkinson's disease (PD). Over 97% of PD patients respond to a single dose of Atremorine (5 g, p.o.) 1 h after administration. This response is gender-, time-, dose-, and genotype-dependent, with optimal doses ranging from 5 to 20 g/day, depending upon disease severity and concomitant medication. Drug-free patients show an increase in DA levels from 12.14 ± 0.34 pg/ml to 6463.21 ± 1306.90 pg/ml; and patients chronically treated with anti-PD drugs show an increase in DA levels from 1321.53 ± 389.94 pg/ml to 16,028.54 ± 4783.98 pg/ml, indicating that Atremorine potentiates the dopaminergic effects of conventional anti-PD drugs. Atremorine also influences the levels of other neurotransmitters (adrenaline, noradrenaline) and hormones which are regulated by DA (e.g., prolactin, PRL), with no effect on serotonin or histamine. The variability in Atremorine-induced DA response is highly attributable to pharmacogenetic factors. Polymorphic variants in pathogenic (SNCA, NUCKS1, ITGA8, GPNMB, GCH1, BCKDK, APOE, LRRK2, ACMSD), mechanistic (DRD2), metabolic (CYP2D6, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, CYP3A4/5, NAT2), transporter (ABCB1, SLC6A2, SLC6A3, SLC6A4) and pleiotropic genes (APOE) influence the DA response to Atremorine and its psychomotor and brain effects. Atremorine enhances DNA methylation and displays epigenetic activity via modulation of the pharmacoepigenetic network. Atremorine is a novel neuroprotective agent for dopaminergic neurons with potential prophylactic and therapeutic activity in PD.

Combining Device-Aided Therapies in Parkinson's Disease: A Case Series and a Literature Review

Background

Deep brain stimulation (DBS), levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) and subcutaneous apomorphine infusion are device-aided therapies (DATs) for advanced Parkinson's disease (PD). We present a case series from the Cretan PD Registry who required 2 DATs for optimal management along with a systematic review of similar studies.

Cases

From 2009 to 2020, we retrospectively studied all PD patients who were simultaneously treated with 2 DATs. Six patients on DBS required an infusion treatment for persisting or re-emergent fluctuations because of disease progression. Two patients on LCIG infusion received DBS as a levodopa-sparing strategy because of drug-induced complications. Fluctuations and quality of life improved in all patients.

Literature review

We identified 4 case series, 1 prospective and 1 retrospective study that included a total of 50 DBS-treated patients who required an infusion therapy. Improvement in motor outcomes, assessed in different ways, was a constant finding.

Conclusions

Selected PD patients on 1 DAT may experience additional benefit from a second DAT, for several reasons along the course of their disease. Although infusion therapies optimize dopaminergic drug delivery in fluctuating DBS-treated patients, DBS added on LCIG treatment has an additive symptomatic effect that allows levodopa dose reduction in patients with drug-induced side effects.

Effectiveness of Cognitive Rehabilitation in Parkinson's Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Cognitive deficits influence the quality of life of Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. In order to reduce the impact of cognitive impairment in PD, cognitive rehabilitation programs have been developed. This study presents a systematic review and meta-analysis regarding the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation in non-demented PD patients. Twelve articles were selected according to PRISMA guidelines. The systematic review showed that attention, working memory, verbal memory, executive functions and processing speed were the most frequently improved domains. Meta-analysis results showed moderate effects on global cognitive status (g = 0.55) and working memory (g = 0.50); small significant effects on verbal memory (g = 0.41), overall cognitive functions (g = 0.39) and executive functions (g = 0.30); small non-significant effects on attention (g = 0.36), visual memory (g = 0.29), verbal fluency (g = 0.27) and processing speed (g = 0.24); and no effect on visuospatial and visuoconstructive abilities (g = 0.17). Depressive symptoms showed small effect (g = 0.24) and quality of life showed no effect (g = −0.07). A meta-regression was performed to examine moderating variables of overall cognitive function effects, although moderators did not explain the heterogeneity of the improvement after cognitive rehabilitation. The findings suggest that cognitive rehabilitation may be beneficial in improving cognition in non-demented PD patients, although further studies are needed to obtain more robust effects.

An Innovative Personalised Management Program for Older Adults with Parkinson's Disease: New Concepts and Future Directions

Introduction: Parkinson’s disease is a heterogeneous clinical syndrome. Parkinson’s disease in older persons presents with a diverse array of clinical manifestations leading to unique care needs. This raises the need for the healthcare community to proactively address the care needs of older persons with Parkinson’s disease. Though it is tempting to categorise different phenotypes of Parkinson’s disease, a strong evidence based for the same is lacking. There is considerable literature describing the varying clinical manifestations in old age. This article aims to review the literature looking for strategies in personalising the management of an older person with Parkinson’s disease.

Specialized Staff for the Care of People with Parkinson's Disease in Germany: An Overview

Access to specialized care is essential for people with Parkinson´s disease (PD). Given the growing number of people with PD and the lack of general practitioners and neurologists, particularly in rural areas in Germany, specialized PD staff (PDS), such as PD nurse specialists and Parkinson Assistants (PASS), will play an increasingly important role in the care of people with PD over the coming years. PDS have several tasks, such as having a role as an educator or adviser for other health professionals or an advocate for people with PD to represent and justify their needs. PD nurse specialists have been established for a long time in the Netherlands, England, the USA, and Scandinavia. In contrast, in Germany, distinct PDS models and projects have been established. However, these projects and models show substantial heterogeneity in terms of access requirements, education, theoretical and practical skills, principal workplace (inpatient vs. outpatient), and reimbursement. This review provides an overview of the existing forms and regional models for PDS in Germany. PDS reimbursement concepts must be established that will foster an implementation throughout Germany. Additionally, development of professional roles in nursing and more specialized care in Germany is needed.

The efficacy of dance for improving motor impairments, non-motor symptoms, and quality of life in Parkinson's disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Dance may help individuals living with Parkinson's disease (PD) improve motor and non-motor symptoms that impact quality of life (QOL). The primary aim of this systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was to evaluate the efficacy of dance in improving motor and non-motor symptoms of PD and QOL. The secondary aims of this review were to evaluate the methodological quality of included studies by assessing risk of bias across nine categories and to inform the direction of future research. Peer-reviewed RCTs that included people living with PD at all disease stages and ages and measured the effects of a dance intervention longer than one day were included. Sixteen RCTs involving 636 participants with mild to moderate PD were eligible for inclusion in the qualitative synthesis and nine in the meta-analysis. Overall, the reviewed evidence demonstrated that dance can improve motor impairments, specifically balance and motor symptom severity in individuals with mild to moderate PD, and that more research is needed to determine its effects on non-motor symptoms and QOL. RCTs that use a mixed-methods approach and include larger sample sizes will be beneficial in fully characterizing effects and in determining which program elements are most important in bringing about positive, clinically meaningful changes in people with PD.

An evaluation of subcutaneous apomorphine for the treatment of Parkinson's disease

INTRODUCTION

Heterogeneity of symptoms and individual variability of progression characterizes Parkinson's disease. Unmet therapeutic needs include a cure, disease modification, and improvement of available marketed dopamine-substituting compounds. Personalized treatment, tailored to the patients' needs and symptoms, aims to ameliorate impaired motor behavior and non-motor features. Injection or infusion of apomorphine is a therapeutic option for more advanced patients with severe levodopa associated motor complications.

AREAS COVERED

This narrative review summarizes the subcutaneous administration, efficacy, and side effects of the non-ergot derivative dopamine agonist apomorphine following a non-systematic literature research.

EXPERT OPINION

Subcutaneous apomorphine hydrochloride application rapidly terminates intervals with severe motor impairment with bolus injections. Oscillation of motor behavior well responds to continuous apomorphine infusions. Long-term application of the commercially available apomorphine hydrochloride solution sooner or later affects skin and oral mucosa. Onset of skin nodules associated with subcutaneous tissue inflammation probably results from the antioxidant preservative sodium metabisulfite in the apomorphine solution. Addition of another better tolerated and safer antioxidant instead of sodium metabisulphite or use of an already available concentrated apomorphine-free base formulation will enhance its future use, its tolerability, safety, and acceptance of subcutaneous and sublingual application.

Recommendations for the Organization of Multidisciplinary Clinical Care Teams in Parkinson's Disease

BACKGROUND

Optimal management in expert centers for Parkinson's disease (PD) usually involves pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions, delivered by a multidisciplinary approach. However, there is no guideline specifying how this model should be organized. Consequently, the nature of multidisciplinary care varies widely.

OBJECTIVE

To optimize care delivery, we aimed to provide recommendations for the organization of multidisciplinary care in PD.

METHODS

Twenty expert centers in the field of multidisciplinary PD care participated. Their leading neurologists completed a survey covering eight themes: elements for optimal multidisciplinary care; team members; role of patients and care partners; team coordination; team meetings; inpatient versus outpatient care; telehealth; and challenges towards multidisciplinary care. During a consensus meeting, outcomes were incorporated into concept recommendations that were reviewed by each center's multidisciplinary team. Three patient organizations rated the recommendations according to patient priorities. Based on this feedback, a final set of recommendations (essential elements for delivery of multidisciplinary care) and considerations (desirable elements) was developed.

RESULTS

We developed 30 recommendations and 10 considerations. The patient organizations rated the following recommendations as most important: care is organized in a patient-centered way; every newly diagnosed patient has access to a core multidisciplinary team; and each team has a coordinator. A checklist was created to further facilitate its implementation.

CONCLUSION

We provide a practical tool to improve multidisciplinary care for persons with PD at the organizational level. Future studies should focus on implementing these recommendations in clinical practice, evaluating their potential applicability and effectiveness, and comparing alternative models of PD care.

Visuospatial functioning is associated with sleep disturbance and hallucinations in nondemented patients with Parkinson's disease

Introduction: Cognitive impairment is a common symptom of Parkinson's disease (PD) associated with reduced quality of life and a more severe disease state. Previous research has shown an association between visuospatial dysfunction and worse disease course; however, it is not clear whether this is separable from executive dysfunction and/or dementia. This study sought to determine whether distinct cognitive factors could be measured in a large PD cohort, and if those factors were differentially associated with other PD-related features, specifically to provide insight into visuospatial dysfunction. Methods: Non-demented participants with PD from the Pacific Udall Center were enrolled (n = 197). Co-participants (n = 104) completed questionnaires when available. Principal components factor analysis (PCFA) was utilized to group the neuropsychological test scores into independent factors by considering those with big factor loading (≥.40). Linear and logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the relationship between the cognitive factors identified in the PCFA and other clinical features of PD. Results: Six factors were extracted from the PCFA: 1) executive/processing speed, 2) visual learning & memory/visuospatial, 3) auditory working memory, 4) contextual verbal memory, 5) semantic learning & memory, and 6) visuospatial. Motor severity (p = 0.001), mood (p < 0.001), and performance on activities of daily living scores (informant: p < 0.001, patient: p = 0.009) were primarily associated with frontal and executive factors. General sleep disturbance (p < 0.006) and hallucinations (p = 0.002) were primarily associated with visuospatial functioning and visual learning/memory. Conclusions: Motor symptoms, mood, and performance on activities of daily living were primarily associated with frontal/executive factors. Sleep disturbance and hallucinations were associated with visuospatial functioning and visual learning/memory only, over and above executive functioning and regardless of cognitive disease severity. These findings support that visuospatial function in PD may indicate a more severe disease course, and that symptom management should be guided accordingly.

Cognitive behavioral therapy improves diverse profiles of depressive symptoms in Parkinson's disease

OBJECTIVE

Depression is among the most common and debilitating nonmotor complaints in Parkinson's disease (PD), yet there is a paucity of controlled research to guide treatment. Little research has focused on the extent to which specific depressive symptom profiles may dictate unique clinical recommendations to ultimately improve treatment outcomes. The current study examined the impact of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on different types of depressive symptoms in PD. It was hypothesized that the cognitive (eg, guilt, rumination, and negative attitudes towards self) and behavioral (eg, avoidance and procrastination) symptoms targeted most intensively by the treatment protocol would show the most robust response. The extent to which stabilized antidepressant use moderated specific symptom change was examined on an exploratory basis.

METHOD

Eighty depressed people with PD participated in a randomized controlled trial of CBT plus clinical management, versus clinical management only. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) subscale scores, reflecting depressive symptom heterogeneity in PD, were the focus of this investigation.

RESULTS

CBT response was associated with significant improvements in mood, sleep, anxiety, and somatic symptoms (HAMD), and negative attitudes toward self, performance impairment, and somatic symptoms (BDI). As hypothesized, the largest effect sizes were observed for cognitive and behavioral (vs somatic) symptoms of depression. Stabilized antidepressant use moderated the effect of CBT on somatic complaints (HAMD and BDI).

CONCLUSIONS

CBT may improve a diverse array of depressive symptoms in PD. Cognitive and behavioral (vs somatic) symptoms showed the greatest change. Combining CBT with antidepressants may help optimize the management of somatic complaints in depression in PD (dPD).

Parkinson's Disease in the Era of Personalised Medicine: One Size Does Not Fit All

The concept of personalised medicine in Parkinson's disease has arrived where the implications of findings made in research are certain to have an increasing impact upon clinical practice. Disease heterogeneity in Parkinson's disease has been well described and lends itself to the construct of personalised medicine where it is hypothesised that a greater understanding of genetic and pathophysiological contributions may underpin the sub-groups described. This in turn has driven the development of potentially individualised disease-modifying therapies where, for example, we are beginning to see treatments that target patients with Parkinson's disease with specific genetic mutations. Furthermore, clinicians are increasingly recognising the need to tailor their management approach to patients depending on their age of presentation, acknowledging differential side-effect profiles and responses especially when considering the use of device-assisted technologies such as infusion or surgery. Clearly, individualising the treatment of both motor and non-motor symptoms will remain imperative but, in the future, personalised medicine may provide clearer insights into various aspects of a patient's symptomatology, disease course and thus the best therapeutic approaches.

[A clinical and genetic study of impulsive-compulsive disorders in patients with Parkinson's disease]

AIM

To evaluate the frequency and spectrum of impulsive-compulsive disorders (ICDs) in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) without dopaminergic medication and among patients receiving dopaminergic replacement therapy, depending on personality type, genetic factors, and to determine the influence of ICDs on the development of other non-motor manifestations of the disease.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Three hundred and eighty-six consecutive patients with idiopathic PD, including untreated patients with PD (de novo) and patients receiving dopaminergic replacement therapy during one year, were examined. ICDs were evaluated with QUIP and diagnostic criteria. Personality type and temperament features were assessed by the Eysenck personality inventory. Genotyping for the single nucleotide polymorphism rs141116007 in the DBH gene involved in the pathogenesis of PD and ICDs was performed.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

ICDs were identified in 20.2% patients with PD and in 4% patients of the de novo group. The most common (10.36%) behavioral disorder was a binge eating. The frequency of ICDs among patients with PD before the onset of dopamine replacement therapy increased by 1.03 times after one year treatment. Smoking and young age were risk factors for ICDs (p<0.05). The results of the study allowed the determination of social and neuropsychological risk factors for ICDs in patients with PD. The account of these features, as well as early detection of ICDs using screening questionnaires may help to personalize treatment of patients with PD and to prevent the risk of developing comorbid non-motor manifestations of the disease.

Burden of non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease patients predicts improvement in quality of life during treatment with levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

GLORIA, a registry conducted with 375 advanced Parkinson's disease patients treated with levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) for 24 months in routine clinical care, demonstrated significant reductions from baseline in 'off' time and 'on' time with dyskinesia and improvements in the Non-Motor Symptom Scale (NMSS) total and individual domain scores, and in Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire 8 item (PDQ-8) total score.

METHODS

Associations between baseline NMSS burden (NMSB), the multi-domain NMSS total score and the PDQ-8 total score were investigated for 233 patients. Baseline NMSB was assigned to five numerical categories defined by the NMSS total cutoff scores (0-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61-80 and >80). Pearson and Spearman correlations were calculated at month 24.

RESULTS

The response of LCIG was assessed using validated criteria after 24 months. The proportion of patients decreasing ≥ 30 NMSS score points was 47% in the most affected NMSB category (NMSS total score > 80). A positive association was noted between baseline NMSB and NMSS total score (0.57, P < 0.0001), as well as between NMSS total score and PDQ-8 total score (0.46, P < 0.0001). Associations between improvements of the NMSS domain sleep/fatigue and PDQ-8 total score (0.32, P = 0.0001) as well as between the NMSS domain mood/cognition and PDQ-8 total score (0.37, P < 0.0001) were also shown.

CONCLUSIONS

This analysis demonstrated positive associations between NMSS baseline burden and improvements of non-motor symptoms. Improvements of non-motor symptoms were associated with improved quality of life in advanced parkinsonian patients during a 2-year treatment with LCIG and reflect the long-term non-motor efficacy of this treatment.

Dietary Variations in a Multiethnic Parkinson's Disease Cohort and Possible Influences on Nonmotor Aspects: A Cross-Sectional Multicentre Study

Dietary habits may differ between Parkinson's disease (PD) patients of different ethnicities. The primary aim of this cross-sectional analysis was to compare dietary habits in a multiethnic PD population and investigate potential nonmotor differences. All patients completed a dietary habits questionnaire. Besides basic demographics, patients' motor involvement (Hoehn and Yahr (HY)) and nonmotor symptoms (Nonmotor Symptoms Scale; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) were assessed. 139 PD patients were included (mean age 66.8 ± 11.6 years; 61.2% male; mean disease duration 6.2 ± 5.2 years; median HY 3): 47.5% were White, 24.5% Asian, and 28.0% Black African and Caribbean (BAC). We found dietary differences between the groups, including a greater frequency of vegetarians and greater consumption of cumin, turmeric, and cinnamon as well as lower consumption of beef in Asian patients than in White and BAC and greater consumption of chili than in White patients and higher consumption of pork in White than Asian and BAC patients. There were no significant differences in dietary supplement consumption after correction for multiple comparisons. None of the dietary factors examined were associated with differences in nonmotor symptoms. Diet and supplement use vary in PD patients across ethnicities, this is both a problem and opportunity for nutritional medicine research. These data support the importance of considering ethnic diversity as part of recruitment strategy in nutrition and clinical studies.

Application of Precision Medicine in Neurodegenerative Diseases

One of the main challenges for healthcare systems is the increasing prevalence of neurodegenerative pathologies together with the rapidly aging populations. The enormous progresses made in the field of biomedical research and informatics have been crucial for improving the knowledge of how genes, epigenetic modifications, aging, nutrition, drugs and microbiome impact health and disease. In fact, the availability of high technology and computational facilities for large-scale analysis enabled a deeper investigation of neurodegenerative disorders, providing a more comprehensive overview of disease and encouraging the development of a precision medicine approach for these pathologies. On this subject, the creation of collaborative networks among medical centers, research institutes and highly qualified specialists can be decisive for moving the precision medicine from the bench to the bedside. To this purpose, the present review has been thought to discuss the main components which may be part of precise and personalized treatment programs applied to neurodegenerative disorders. Parkinson Disease will be taken as an example to understand how precision medicine approach can be clinically useful and provide substantial benefit to patients. In this perspective, the realization of web-based networks can be decisive for the implementation of precision medicine strategies across different specialized centers as well as for supporting clinical/therapeutical decisions and promoting a more preventive and participative medicine for neurodegenerative disorders. These collaborative networks are essentially addressed to find innovative, sustainable and effective strategies able to provide optimal and safer therapies, discriminate at risk individuals, identify patients at preclinical or early stage of disease, set-up individualized and preventative strategies for improving prognosis and patient's quality of life.

Non-Motor Symptoms as Predictors of Quality of Life in Egyptian Patients With Parkinson's Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study Using a Culturally Adapted 39-Item Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire

Objective

The prevalence of non-motor symptoms (NMSs) and their impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in Parkinson's disease (PD) has been reported inconsistently among different populations. In this study, we aimed to investigate the NMSs and HRQoL profiles and their correlation in Egyptian PD patients, using a culturally adapted Arabic version of the 39-item Parkinson's disease questionnaire (PDQ-39).

Methods

Ninety-seven PD patients were rated using the unified Parkinson's disease rating scale (UPDRS), the non-motor symptoms scales (NMSS), Beck depression inventory (BDI), and the Arabic version of PDQ-39. We used the Spearman's rank correlation and multiple linear regression analyses to evaluate the relationship between NMSs domains and HRQoL dimensions.

Results

Fatigue/sleep (91.3%) and mood/cognitive disturbances (87%) were the most frequently and severely affected NMSS domains. Other common NMSs included urinary (75.9%), memory/attention (72.4%), gastrointestinal (67.8%), and cardiovascular problems (64.8%). The total NMSS scores were positively correlated with UPDRS I, II, and III scores. Depression was prevalent in 76.7% of PD patients. Moreover, all enrolled PD patients reported impairment in different HRQoL dimensions, especially mobility (98.9%), activities of daily living (97.8%), and emotional well-being (95.5%). The summary index of PDQ-39 was correlated to the total NMSS, UPDRS-I, UPDRS-II Off, UPDRS-III (Off and On states), and BDI scores.

Conclusion

This study showed the high prevalence of NMSs and the value of NMSS and BDI scores as predictors of HRQoL in Egyptian PD patients. Therefore, characterizing the NMSs profile is essential for tailoring management strategies for PD patients.