Severely Affected by Parkinson Disease: The Patient's View and Implications for Palliative Care

Introduction: People severely affected by Parkinson disease (PD)/atypical parkinsonism (AP) comprise a heterogeneous group with distinct needs, which so far remain largely unexamined. The aim of our study was to analyze reasons for feeling severely affected and document unmet needs in a patient subgroup severely affected by PD/AP using solely a subjective inclusion criterion.

Methods: Patients feeling severely affected by PD/AP were recruited via a magazine published by the German Parkinson Association. A questionnaire was sent out nationwide. Besides analyzing the closed-ended questions, a subsample of 40% was analyzed regarding the open-ended questions using content analysis. Correlations between subjectively felt severe affectedness and objective criteria were calculated.

Results: Eight hundred fourteen questionnaires were analyzed. Sample characteristics were: mean age 70 years; 60.3% male; time since diagnosis up to 37 years; and Hoehn and Yahr score (if known) 3 (44.6%), followed by 4 (23.9%). Significant associations were observed between subjectively felt severe affectedness and Hoehn and Yahr ( P ≤ .05), poorer health ( P ≤ .01), higher nursing care level ( P ≤ 0.01), and having no children ( P ≤ .05). Most common reasons for feeling severely affected were mobility impairment (34.9%), coordination problems (17.0%), speech problems (12.2%), and limited day-to-day activities (7.8%). Most often expressed unmet needs were support in everyday life (28.1%), medical treatment (15.2%), help with financial services (11.6%), and social integration (9.9%).

Conclusions: To meet the complex needs, an integrated multidisciplinary and multiprofessional approach is indicated befitting palliative care principles. Herein, home-based services seem of special importance for patients in advanced disease stages.