Author(s)

Divya Madhusudhan¹, Daniella Sisniega¹, Andrew Ferree¹, Janice Weinberg², Marie Saint-Hilaire³, Samuel Ellias³, Anna DePold Hohler³

¹Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, USA.
²Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, USA.
³Department of Neurology, Boston University Medical Center, Boston, USA.

Introduction: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease more common in those over the age of 60. PD is classically characterized by motor features, although patients may also experience non-motor symptoms. Sleep disturbances, such as rapid eye movement (REM) behavior disorder (RBD), are common in patients with PD and may precede onset of PD. Methods: Data was collected on patients with PD (358 subjects)in a movement disorders clinic at a safety net hospital. In this retrospective database analysis, the association of PD complications with age of onset was evaluated using chi-square tests and logistic regression. Results: Of the PD complications analyzed, there was a significant difference in sleep disturbances by age. Among the 358 PD patients, 120 individuals (33.5%) had information regarding the presence or absence of sleep disturbances. There was a significant difference between the early (onset < 50) and later onset (≥50) groups (p = 0.03) with the odds of having a sleep disorder for the early group 1.6 times that of the late group. Those subjects with siblings who also had PD had 2.0 times the odds of having a sleep disorder compared those without (p = 0.02). Conclusion: Non-motor symptoms such as sleep disorders are a useful predictor of early onset PD. Genetic components of PD impact both motor and non-motor aspects of the disease.

Parkinson’s Disease (PD), Sleep Disorders, Rapid Eye Movement Behavior Disorder (RBD), Age, Non-Motor Symptoms, Familial PD

Madhusudhan, D. , Sisniega, D. , Ferree, A. , Weinberg, J. , Saint-Hilaire, M. , Ellias, S. and Hohler, A. (2016) Sleep Disturbance in Parkinson’s Disease Varies with Age of Onset and Family History. Advances in Parkinson's Disease, 5, 103-117. doi: 10.4236/apd.2016.54013.