[The incidence and prevalence of Parkinson's disease in the People's Republic of China].

An epidemiological study on the incidence and prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) was carried out in 29 provinces, cities and autonomous regions in the People's Republic of China in 1986. The survey was conducted in 117 areas and 566 patients with PD were found among 3369,162 persons examined, giving a point prevalence rate of 14.6/10(5) on June 30, 1986. The prevalence for men and women were 16.9/10(5) and 12.4/10(5) respectively, with the highest prevalence at the fifth decade of age. The disease was most prevalent in the southern part of China, especially Hunan and Guangxi provinces. The incidence rate was 1.5/10(5) in the year of 1986. Both the prevalence and incidence of PD in China were lower than those in the white races and Japanese.