The "gender factor" in wearing-off among patients with Parkinson's disease: a post hoc analysis of DEEP study.

Delia Colombo,Lucia Simoni,Angelo Antonini,Mahmood Attar,Giovanni Abbruzzese,Flavia Franconi,Shalom Haggiag,Fabrizio Stocchi,Gilberto Bellia,Emanuela Zagni,Paolo Barone

doi:10.1155/2015/787451

Abstract

Background. The early detection of wearing-off in Parkinson disease (DEEP) observational study demonstrated that women with Parkinson's disease (PD) carry an increased risk (80.1%) for wearing-off (WO). This post hoc analysis of DEEP study evaluates gender differences on WO and associated phenomena. Methods. Patients on dopaminergic treatment for ≥1 year were included in this multicenter observational cross-sectional study. In a single visit, WO was diagnosed based on neurologist assessment as well as the use of the 19-item wearing-off questionnaire (WOQ-19); WO was defined for scores ≥2. Post hoc analyses were conducted to investigate gender difference for demographic and clinical features with respect to WO. Results. Of 617 patients enrolled, 236 were women and 381 were men. Prevalence of WO was higher among women, according to both neurologists' judgment (61.9% versus 53.8%, P = 0.045) and the WOQ-19 analysis (72.5% versus 64.0%, P = 0.034). In patients with WO (WOQ-19), women experienced ≥1 motor symptom in 72.5% versus 64.0% in men and ≥1 nonmotor symptom in 44.5% versus 36.7%, in men. Conclusions. Our results suggest WO as more common among women, for both motor and nonmotor symptoms. Prospective studies are warranted to investigate this potential gender-effect.

Highlights

Evaluation of gender differences in the study sample indicated no difference in age, history of concomitant diseases, caregiver support, body mass index, or coffee consumption
WO is an important feature of Parkinson’s disease (PD), often marking the end of the “honeymoon period.”
This paper was dedicated to assess gender differences in WO and is based on the post hoc analysis of the DEEP study, a large epidemiological survey that enrolled more than 600 patients with PD across Italy

Summary

Introduction

The early detection of wearing-off in Parkinson disease (DEEP) observational study demonstrated that women with Parkinson’s disease (PD) carry an increased risk (80.1%) for wearing-off (WO). This post hoc analysis of DEEP study evaluates gender differences on WO and associated phenomena. In patients with WO (WOQ-19), women experienced ≥1 motor symptom in 72.5% versus 64.0% in men and ≥1 nonmotor symptom in 44.5% versus 36.7%, in men. PD is slightly more common in men than in women in most studies, usually ranging from a 1.2 : 1 ratio up to a 1.5 : 1 ratio [1], and men seem to be at higher risk for PD [2,3,4]. Normal human basal ganglia, within the dopamine system, are sexually dimorphic and that may influence the onset and progression of PD [8]

Methods

Results

Conclusion