Wie beurteilen Ärzte die Häufigkeit demenzieller, depressiver und psychotischer Symptome bei Patienten mit der P arkinson-Krankheit? Eine Befragung von 500 Fachärzten im ambulanten Versorgung ssektor

Neuropsychiatric disorders such as dementia, de- pression or psychosis are frequent complications of Parkinson's disease. Age, gender and stage-re- lated prevalences, however , are unclear and un- derstudied. Main goal of the GEPAD study is to provide reliable prev alence estimates of concom- itant neuropsychiatric disorders in patients with Parkinson's disease. As part of a pilot study for GEPAD, N= 517 participating neurologists were asked to rate a total of 1326 PD patients for pres- ence and absence of neuropsy chiatric symptoms and syndromes. Dementia was rated in 40.4 % of all PD patients, depression and psychosis in 37.2 % and 20.4 %, respectively . Gender diffe- rences were only found for depression. Freq uen- cies of dementia and psy chotic symptoms increa- sed by age. Findings from this pilot study ± based on symptom ratings by treating physicians only ± suggest that nearly two-thir ds of Parkinson's dis- ease patients additionally suffer from partly complex patterns of neuro psychiatric symptoms that increase by age and illness progression.