Background: Anxiety and depression are non-motor symptoms commonly found in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of anxiety and depression in patients with PD, including factors related to their anxiety and depression.

Materials and Methods: Forty-four PD patients of the present cross-sectional study were observed between August 1, 2021 and September 30, 2021. Anxiety and depression were assessed using the hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS). A score of 8 or more on both HADS anxiety subscale (HADS-A) and HADS depression subscale (HADS-D) denoted significant symptoms of anxiety and depression among the PD patients. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the prevalence and demographic data. The authors used binary logistic regression, linear regression, and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient to analyze the factors associated with anxiety and depression.

Results: From the 44 Thai PD patients, the prevalence of anxiety and depression were 27.3% and 31.8%, respectively. The anxiety related factors were PD duration of 10 years or more (OR 7.50, 95% CI 1.16 to 48.56), levodopa equivalent dose (LED) of 600 mg/day or more (OR 7.00, 95% CI 1.50 to 32.72), total Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) (β=0.46, 95% CI 0.18 to 0.74), UPDRS part II (β=0.32, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.61), and UPDRS III (β=0.37, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.66). The depression related factors were total UPDRS (β=0.39, 95% CI 0.11 to 0.68), and UPDRS part II (β=0.33, 95% CI 0.03 to 0.62).

Conclusion: Results indicate that anxiety and depression are associated with disease severity among individuals with PD. Therefore, physicians who treat PD patients with high disease severity should be aware of and screen for these emotional problems to facilitate appropriate management.

Keywords: Anxiety; Depression; Disease severity; Functional performance test; Hospital anxiety and depression scale; Parkinson’s disease

DOI: 10.35755/jmedassocthai.2022.09.13590

Received 1 March 2022 | Revised 20 July 2022 | Accepted 4 August 2022