Healthcare utilization in patients with Parkinson's disease: a population-based analysis.

Purpose: To investigate factors associated with healthcare utilization and prescription drug use for Parkinson's disease (PD) patients and matched controls.

Methods: A retrospective matched-group design was adopted using administrative data from Manitoba, Canada. PD cases (N = 1469) were identified from diagnoses in hospital records and physician billing claims and matched to controls (N = 2938) on age, sex, and region of residence.

Socioeconomic variations in the prevalence and incidence of Parkinson's disease: a population-based analysis.

Background: For many chronic conditions, lower socioeconomic status is associated with higher rates of disease. Previous research has not investigated whether this inverse relationship exists for Parkinson's disease (PD). The purpose was to investigate the association between socioeconomic status and prevalence and incidence of PD.