Depressive symptoms in Parkinson's disease are insufficiently but more often treated than in other chronic conditions

Tatiana Usnich; Björn Hauptmann; Henrike Hanssen; Jannik Prasuhn; Alexander Balck; Max Borsche; Vera Tadic; Annika Klee; Greta Noblejas-Sanchez; Eva-Juliane Vollstedt; Christine Klein; Norbert Brüggemann; Meike Kasten; EPIPARK Study Group

doi:10.1038/s41531-023-00551-8

Depressive symptoms in Parkinson's disease are insufficiently but more often treated than in other chronic conditions

NPJ Parkinsons Dis. 2023 Jul 14;9(1):113. doi: 10.1038/s41531-023-00551-8.

Authors

Tatiana Usnich¹, Björn Hauptmann², Henrike Hanssen^{1

3}, Jannik Prasuhn^{1

3}, Alexander Balck^{1

3}, Max Borsche^{1

3}, Vera Tadic^{1

3}, Annika Klee^{1

4}, Greta Noblejas-Sanchez⁴, Eva-Juliane Vollstedt¹, Christine Klein¹, Norbert Brüggemann^{1

3}, Meike Kasten^{5

6}; EPIPARK Study Group

Collaborators

EPIPARK Study Group:
Julia Graf, Nathalie Schell, Raluca Modreanu, Barbara Staemmler, Elena Loewin

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Neurogenetics, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany.
² Neurologisches Zentrum, Segeberger Kliniken Gruppe, Bad Segeberg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
³ Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany.
⁴ Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany.
⁵ Institute of Neurogenetics, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany. meike.kasten@uni-luebeck.de.
⁶ Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany. meike.kasten@uni-luebeck.de.

Abstract

Depressive symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD) are multifactorial and are partly linked to the underlying dopaminergic deficit. However, at least a subset of PD patients may exhibit an unspecific depressive reaction to chronic illness. Here, we compared the prevalence and severity of depressive symptoms in PD patients and disease controls (DC). PD patients reported depressive symptoms at similar frequencies as DC but were on antidepressants, especially Mirtazapine, more frequently. Still, in both groups, a high proportion of patients with clinically significant depressive symptoms was not receiving medication. Diagnosis and treatment of depressive symptoms both in PD and DC should be improved.