Covid-19 in Parkinson’s Disease treated by drugs or brain stimulation

Salari, Mehri; Etemadifar, Masoud; Zali, Alireza; Aminzade, Zahra; Navalpotro-Gómez, Irene; Fateh, Sepand Tehrani

doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nrl.2021.07.002

Covid-19 in Parkinson’s Disease treated by drugs or brain stimulation

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Salari M, Etemadifar M, Zali A, Aminzade Z, Navalpotro-Gomez I, Fateh ST. Covid-19 in Parkinson’s Disease treated by drugs or brain stimulation. Neurologia (Engl Ed). 2021 Aug 2. DOI: 10.1016/j.nrl.2021.07.002

Abstract

Purpose: Covid-19 has affected all people, especially those with chronic diseases, including Parkinson's Disease (PD). Covid-19 may affect both motor and neuropsychiatric symptoms of PD patients. We intend to evaluate different aspects of Covid-19 impact on PD patients. Methods: 647 PD patients were evaluated in terms of PD-related and Covid-19-related clinical presentations in addition to past medical history during the pandemic through an online questioner. They were compared with an age-matched control group consist of 673 individuals and a sample of the normal population consist of 1215 individuals. Results: The prevalence of Covid-19 in PD patients was 11.28%. The mortality was 1.23% among PD patients. The prevalence of Covid-19 in PD patients who undergone Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) was 18.18%. No significant association was found between the duration of disease and the prevalence of Covid-19. A statistically significant higher prevalence of Covid-19 in PD patients who had direct contact with SARS-CoV-19 infected individuals was found. No statistically significant association has been found between the worsening of motor symptoms and Covid-19. PD patients and the normal population may differ in the prevalence of some psychological disorders, including anxiety and sleeping disorders, and Covid-19 may affect the psychological status. Conclusion: PD patients possibly follow tighter preventive protocols, which lead to lower prevalence and severity of Covid-19 and its consequences in these patients. Although it seems Covid-19 does not affect motor and psychological aspects of PD as much as it was expected, more accurate evaluations are suggested in order to clarify such effects.