Workforce participation and activities in Parkinson's disease patients receiving device-aided therapy.

OBJECTIVES

Many countries have an aging population, and it is thus likely that Parkinson's disease (PD) will become an increasing health problem. It is important to ensure this group can use their resources in the best way possible, including remaining in the work market. This study aimed to investigate workforce participation and daily activities among patients with PD receiving device-aided therapy to provide new knowledge that may be used to inform decisions about these therapy options.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This was a retrospective, descriptive quantitative pilot study, including 67 patients with PD from 3 centers in Sweden and Denmark. Included patients were younger than 67 years at the time of introduction of device-aided therapy. Eligible patients were identified by the Swedish national Parkinson patient registry or by the treating neurologist. Quantitative interviews were made by telephone.

RESULTS

A majority of the patients could perform the same, or more, amount of activities approximately 5 years after the introduction of device-aided therapy. A small number of patients receiving deep brain stimulation (DBS) and levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) were able to increase their work capacity within 1 year of initiating device-aided therapy and a remarkably high share could still work at the end-point of this study, approximately 15 years since the diagnosis of PD.

CONCLUSIONS

Device-aided therapy may sustain or increase daily activities and workforce participation in patients with PD who have not yet reached retirement age. There is need for prospective studies, both quantitative and qualitative, to confirm these results.