Higher Frequency of Stuttered Disfluencies Negatively Affects Communicative Participation in Parkinson's Disease.

Purpose: Up to 90% of people with Parkinson's disease (PD) develop communication difficulties over the course of the disease. While the negative effect of dysarthria on communicative participation has been well-documented, the impact of the occurrence of acquired stuttered disfluencies on communication in different speech situations is unknown. This study aimed to determine if the frequency of occurrence of stuttered disfluencies affects communicative participation in individuals with PD, and whether such a relationship is mediated by examiner- and self-rated measures of disease severity.

Early-phase amyloid PET reproduces metabolic signatures of cognitive decline in Parkinson's disease.

Introduction: Recent work suggests that amyloid beta (Aβ) positron emission tomography (PET) tracer uptake shortly after injection ("early phase") reflects brain metabolism and perfusion. We assessed this modality in a predominantly amyloid-negative neurodegenerative condition, Parkinson's disease (PD), and hypothesized that early-phase F-florbetaben (eFBB) uptake would reproduce characteristic hypometabolism and hypoperfusion patterns associated with cognitive decline in PD.

Methods: One hundred fifteen PD patients across the spectrum of cognitive impairment underwent dual-phase Aβ PET, structural and arterial spin labeling (ASL) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and neuropsychological assessments.

Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Association of Clinical and Neurocognitive Factors With Apathy in Patients With Parkinson Disease.

Background And Objectives: A robust understanding of the natural history of apathy in Parkinson disease (PD) is foundational for developing effective clinical management tools. However, large longitudinal studies are lacking while the literature is inconsistent about even cross-sectional associations. We aimed to determine the longitudinal predictors of apathy development in a large cohort of people with PD and its cross-sectional associations and trajectories over time, using sophisticated Bayesian modeling techniques.

Acquired Stuttering in Parkinson's Disease.

Background: Parkinson's disease frequently causes communication impairments, but knowledge about the occurrence of new-onset stuttering is limited.

Objectives: To determine the presence of acquired neurogenic stuttering and its relationship with cognitive and motor functioning in individuals with Parkinson's disease.

Method: Conversation, picture description, and reading samples were collected from 100 people with Parkinson's disease and 25 controls to identify the presence of stuttered disfluencies (SD) and their association with neuropsychological test performance and motor function.

Higher perceived stress and exacerbated motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease during the COVID-19 lockdown in New Zealand.

Aims: Stress plays a key role in Parkinson's disease (PD) by acting on the dopaminergic system and worsening patients' motor function. The impact of New Zealand's strict lockdown measures to contain COVID-19 on perceived stress and PD motor symptoms remains unknown. Here we examined the relationship between perceived levels of stress, changes in physical activity levels and PD motor symptoms during lockdown.

Neuropsychiatric Symptoms Are Associated with Dementia in Parkinson's Disease but Not Predictive of it.

Background: Neuropsychiatric symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD) may increase dementia (PDD) risk. The predictive value of these symptoms, however, has not been compared to clinical and demographic predictors of future PDD.

Objectives: Determine if neuropsychiatric symptoms are useful markers of PDD risk.

Beta Amyloid Deposition Is Not Associated With Cognitive Impairment in Parkinson's Disease.

The extent to which Alzheimer neuropathology, particularly the accumulation of misfolded beta-amyloid, contributes to cognitive decline and dementia in Parkinson's disease (PD) is unresolved. Here, we used Florbetaben PET imaging to test for any association between cerebral amyloid deposition and cognitive impairment in PD, in a sample enriched for cases with mild cognitive impairment. This cross-sectional study used Movement Disorders Society level II criteria to classify 115 participants with PD as having normal cognition (PDN, = 23), mild cognitive impairment (PD-MCI, = 76), or dementia (PDD, = 16).

Response to "Parkinson's disease mild cognitive impairment classifications and neurobehavioral symptoms".

A recent paper, "Parkinson's disease mild cognitive impairment classifications and neurobehavioral symptoms" (McDermott et al., 2017), provides an interesting comparison of the influence of different criteria for Parkinson's disease with mild cognitive impairment (PD-MCI) on progression to dementia (PDD). Unfortunately, McDermott et al.