Worse QoL Seen for Parkinson Patients With Depressed Caregivers
Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
FRIDAY, Aug. 11, 2023 -- For patients with Parkinson disease (PD), those whose caregivers have depression symptoms have worse quality of life (QOL) and higher emergency department use, according to a study published online Aug. 11 in JAMA Network Open.
Rudmila Rashid, M.D., from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, and colleagues examined the association between caregivers reporting depression symptoms and patient QOL, emergency department visits, and hospitalizations in a retrospective cohort study conducted at 15 centers within the United States. A convenience sample of 454 patients with PD and their caregivers was recruited.
The researchers found an association for greater depression symptoms among caregivers with worse patient QOL as measured by the Parkinson Disease Questionnaire (mean score, 33.78 versus 24.50 on a scale of 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating worse QOL, for patients with caregivers who did and did not have depression symptoms, respectively). In addition, greater depression symptoms among caregivers were associated with more annual emergency department visits, but no association was seen with more hospitalizations.
"Additional caregiving resources and interventions to reduce depression symptoms among caregivers could potentially improve patient outcomes," the authors write.
One author disclosed personal fees from Genentech and Mediflix.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted August 2023
Read this next
Bidirectional Link ID'd for Change in Depressive Symptoms, Memory Change
THURSDAY, June 13, 2024 -- A linear change in depressive symptoms is associated with accelerated memory change and vice versa in adults aged 50 years or older, according to a...
Exposure to Depressive Symptoms Linked to Worse Cognitive Function
WEDNESDAY, June 12, 2024 -- Exposure to elevated depressive symptoms starting in young adulthood is associated with worse cognitive function over midlife, with the association...
Risk of Suicide, Homicide Both Higher at Night
FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- The risk of suicide and homicide is higher at night than might be expected based on the number of people awake at that time, according to a study published...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.