Characteristics of depression in patients with Parkinson’s disease in Nanjing city

Objective To determine the frequency of depression in patients with Parkinson’s disease(PD) and healthy controls over 50 years of age and to analyze the characteristics and influencing factors of PD with depression(PDD) in Nanjing. Methods One hundred and twenty-six PD patients were diagnosed and assessed using Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) and Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD). The frequency, characteristics and influencing factors of depression were statistically analyzed, and the factor analysis of HAMD was carried out. Also, one hundred and twenty-four healthy subjects over the age of 50 were selected as the control group. Results The incidence of depression in PD group was 48.4%(61/126):15.1%(19/126) for mild depression, 27.8%(35/126) for moderate depression, 5.6%(7/126) for severe depression. The incidence of depression in the control group was 9.7%(12/124):5.7%(7/124) for mild depression, 2.4%(3/124) for moderate depression, 1.6%(2/124) for severe depression.There was a significant difference between these two groups(χ2=45.36，P<0.01). Univariate and Logistic regression analysis revealed that a high frequency of depression occurred in patients with long PD duration, high H-Y stage and UPDRS Ⅲ. According to each factor analysis of HAMD, the scores of cognitive impairment, tardiness, anxiety and sleep disturbances of the PD patients with depressive syndromes were higher than that of the control group. Conclusion Depression is a relatively common complication of PD in Nanjing which is associated with long PD duration,severity of motor disturbances and increasing H-Y stage. Key words: Parkinson disease; Depression; Psychiatric status rating scales; Severity of illness index