Patient satisfaction with switching to Stalevo: an open-label evaluation in PD patients experiencing wearing-off (Simcom Study).

Objectives And Methods: This study investigated the ease with which 52 Parkinson's disease patients already receiving adjunct entacapone to traditional levodopa were switched to Stalevo (levodopa/carbidopa/entacapone).

Results: The switch to Stalevo was straightforward for most patients taking standard-release levodopa with 86% of these patients being able to replace their entire regimen without having to change the amount of levodopa taken. The majority of patients (54%, P = 0.

Familial occurrence of Parkinson's disease in a community-based case-control study.

Purpose: To study the occurrence of Parkinson's disease (PD) in the relatives of parkinsonian patients (n=119), and of their matched controls (n=238).Scope: More patients reported a positive family history of PD in their first degree relatives, compared to their controls (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.

The quality of life in Parkinson's disease.

The objective of this study was to examine the quality of life in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) in a community-based sample (n = 228 patients) using a Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) as a measure. Associations to the variables age, age at onset, duration, clinical stage (Hoehn and Yahr), depression (Zung), and dementia (MMSE) were studied. Women scored significantly lower on five of the eight dimensions of SF-36.

Environmental risk factors in Parkinson's disease.

We studied the environmental risk factors of Parkinson's disease (PD) in Finland, particularly those related to rural environment, in a prevalence material in 1992. The population numbered 196,864 people, including urban and rural areas. In this community-based study, we used a case-control method with personal investigation of the case subjects (n = 123) and matched control subjects (n = 246).

Changing epidemiology of Parkinson's disease in southwestern Finland.

Objective: Investigation of the epidemiology of PD in southwestern Finland in 1992 (population 196,864), including urban and rural areas, with a comparison with a similar study, done in the same area in 1971, to evaluate the temporal pattern.

Methods: Community-based method of patient ascertainment with personal investigation of cases.

Results: The age-adjusted prevalence (to the Finnish general population in 1991) was 139 per 100,000 population in 1971 and 166 in 1992.