Effects of selegiline (deprenyl) on cognition in early Parkinson's disease.

The influence of selegiline (5 mg b.i.d.) on cognition of 20 levodopanaive patients with early Parkinson's disease (PD) was examined in an 8-week, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial. Clinical evaluations and cognitive tests were administered at baseline and at 8 weeks; patients with PD who received placebo were also examined 8 weeks after subsequent selegiline treatment. By comparison with non-PD controls, patients with PD were impaired on the Wisconsin card sorting task and on the advanced progressive matrices test, but not in terms of their performance on the Rivermead behavioral memory test or on the rod (spatial) orientation test. Selegiline improved scores on the mentation/mood part and the activities of daily living part of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale, but it did not improve motor scores on this test, nor did it have clear effects on the specific neuropsychological measures that were examined.