Abstract
BackgroundCOVID-19 has made itself known to health care providers and families across the world in a matter of months. While primarily a respiratory disorder, it has also been shown to cause neurological symptoms, which can be a concern for Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. Although PD is not as common as other conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, it affects millions of patients around the world whose care has been affected by the global pandemic.ObjectivesThe aim of this review is to provide insight into the direct and indirect associations between COVID-19 and PD patient care.ResultsPotential direct effects of COVID-19 include possible neurodegeneration, concerns of symptom self-management with over-the-counter (OTC) products and ICU challenges that can arise in PD patients. In addition, a subset of PD patients may be at higher risk of severe COVID-19 infection. The indirect effects of the pandemic are associated with the social distancing measures and disruptions in health care systems and PD clinical trials, which may negatively affect PD patients’ mental wellbeing and create barriers in controlling their PD symptoms. On a more positive note, telemedical care is quickly emerging as a primary communication tool for virtual patient care. However, further research should be conducted to examine the applicability of telemedicine across the entire PD population, such as those with more severe symptoms living in less developed areas. With all the uncertainty during this time, it is hopeful to hear many promising COVID-19 treatments being researched, one of them being a PD drug therapy, amantadine.ConclusionHopefully, we can consider this pandemic an opportunity to strengthen the PD community and learn more about the impact of the SARS-COV-2 virus. This review provides an overview of the interaction between COVID-19 and PD patients and future investigational retrospective studies are suggested to validate the observations.
Highlights
COVID-19 has made itself known to health care providers and families across the world in a matter of months
This review provides an overview of the interaction between COVID-19 and Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients and future investigational retrospective studies are suggested to validate the observations
PD patients, especially those that are elderly and have CVD comorbidities are likely at a higher risk of severe COVID-19 infection
Summary
COVID-19 has made itself known to health care providers and families across the world in a matter of months. While primarily a respiratory disorder, it has been shown to cause neurological symptoms, which can be a concern for Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. PD is not as common as other conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, it affects millions of patients around the world whose care has been affected by the global pandemic. The world is facing an unprecedented time where new patients are being infected by the novel coronavirus called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS CoV-2). Starting as an epidemic in Wuhan, China at the beginning of December 2019, SARS-CoV-2 has spread so quickly that the World Health Organization officially called it ‘coronavirus disease 2019’ (COVID-19) and declared it a pandemic on March 11, 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused drastic changes to health care systems as well as new challenges to social life brought by social distancing and lockdown measures across the world
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