Category: Parkinson's Disease: Non-Motor Symptoms
Objective: Discuss the prevalence, clinical manifestations, and impact of autonomic dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Background: Autonomic dysfunction is an important non-motor feature of PD increasingly recognized by clinicians. It may significantly interfer with quality of life for affected patients.
Method: A retrospective study including patients diagnosed with idiopathic PD was conducted in the department of neurology of the Military Hospital of Tunis from 2009 to 2020. Patients were evaluated for motor function (Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale, UPDRS part III), disease stage (Hoehn and Yahr scale, H&Y), autonomic dysfunction and Quality of Life (Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire-8, PDQ-8).
Results: We collected 136 patients, mean age was 63.3 years and mean disease duration was 5,6 years. The mean UPDRS III score was 42.3 and disease stage (H&Y) scale was 3-4. Autonomic disorders were reported by 88% of patients (n = 51) : urinary incontinence (n=21), incomplete bladder emptying (n=7) and erectile dysfunction (n= 8). Gastro-intestinal disorders were described by 62% of patients (n = 36). These were 24 cases of constipation and 12 cases of hypersialorrhea. Orthostatic dizziness was found in 34% of patients (n = 20). Thirty-seven patients had Hyperhidrosis and 23 had Hyperseborrhea. All types of autonomic dysfunction influenced quality of life, mostly urinary and sexual dysfunctions.
Conclusion: Recognition of the various autonomic disorders is essential because effective treatment may be available and may improve quality of life of patients.
References: [1] Pfeiffer RF. Autonomic Dysfunction in Parkinson’s Disease. Neurotherapeutics. 2020 Oct;17(4):1464-1479. doi: 10.1007/s13311-020-00897-4. PMID: 32789741; PMCID: PMC7851208 [2] Zhang Z, Chen SD. Autonomic Dysfunctions in Parkinson’s Disease: Prevalence, Clinical Characteristics, Potential Diagnostic Markers, and Treatment. Parkinsons Dis. 2020 Dec 24;2020:8740732. doi: 10.1155/2020/8740732. PMID: 33425317; PMCID: PMC7775181 [3] Tomic S, Rajkovaca I, Pekic V, Salha T, Misevic S. Impact of autonomic dysfunctions on the quality of life in Parkinson’s disease patients. Acta Neurol Belg. 2017 Mar;117(1):207-211. doi: 10.1007/s13760-016-0739-6. Epub 2016 Dec 27. PMID: 28028676
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
B. Douma, I. Bedoui, M. Elfekih, H. Derbali, M. Messelmani, A. Riahi, M. Mansour, J. Zaouali, R. Mrissa. Autonomic dysfunction in patients with Parkinson’s disease [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2021; 36 (suppl 1). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/autonomic-dysfunction-in-patients-with-parkinsons-disease/. Accessed May 17, 2025.« Back to MDS Virtual Congress 2021
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/autonomic-dysfunction-in-patients-with-parkinsons-disease/