Is rhinorrhea an under-recognized intrinsic symptom of Parkinson disease? A prospective pilot study.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to compare the prevalence of idiopathic rhinorrhea in PD patients versus controls, to determine the correlation between rhinorrhea and anosmia, and the factors associated with rhinorrhea.

SCOPE: A cohort of 61 PD patients and 51 age-matched controls completed a survey about rhinorrhea and underwent the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT). We compared the prevalence of idiopathic rhinorrhea in the PD patients versus controls, the correlation between rhinorrhea and anosmia in PD patients, and the factors associated with rhinorrhea in the PD patients. The results of the study are that 6% of controls versus 24% of PD patients had rhinorrhea (p = .03); moreover, only 2% of controls versus 15% of PD patients had severe rhinorrhea.

CONCLUSION

Rhinorrhea is more prevalent in PD patients compared to controls and it does not significantly impact performance on a smell test.