Camptocormia in Japanese patients with Parkinson's disease: a multicenter study.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this work was to investigate the prevalence of camptocormia and the clinical characteristics of patients with camptocormia in a large population of PD patients.

BACKGROUND

Although camptocormia has been recognized as a prominent phenomenon in PD, the previous epidemiological reports were limited, especially in terms of sample size.

METHODS

We evaluated 531 PD patients (disease duration: 7.0 ± 5.5 years, mean ± standard deviation). We examined their clinical features and the prevalence of camptocormia.

RESULTS

Camptocormia was detected in 22 patients (4.1%) and found in patients who were older and had more severe motor symptoms and a higher levodopa (L-dopa) dose (P < 0.05), compared to the patients without camptocormia. Patients with camptocormia showed significantly higher frequencies of autonomic symptoms, such as constipation and urinary incontinence (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Camptocormia is uncommon in PD and is associated with disease severity, higher L-dopa dose and higher frequencies of autonomic symptoms.