Influencing factors when Living with Parkinson's Disease: A cross‐sectional study

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To identify the personal- and disease-related factors that are associated with living with Parkinson's disease. BACKGROUND: Living with Parkinson's disease affects the physical, psychological, social and spiritual areas of the person. Health professionals need to know which factors influence the daily living with Parkinson's disease, in order to facilitate a positive living. DESIGN: A multicentre cross-sectional study. METHODS: A total of 324 patients with Parkinson's disease diagnoses were included in the study through a consecutive case sampling. Data were collected from January-June 2015, in specialised units of movement disorders of public and private and community centres, from Spain, Argentina, Mexico, Ecuador and Cuba. Nine measures were applied to evaluate personal-related factors (age, gender, psychosocial function, satisfaction with life, social support, home economical situation) and Parkinson's disease-related factors (duration of disease, motor symptoms and non-motor symptoms). The STROBE checklist was used to ensure quality reporting during the study (see File S1). Multiple linear regression analysis was carried out. RESULTS: Results indicated that social support, followed by satisfaction with life and home economical situation are the only three factors that significantly influence in living with Parkinson's disease. The rest of the factors analysed did not present significant influence in the daily living with this neurodegenerative disease. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the necessity to put more emphasis on the person and his/her daily living with the condition and less on symptoms and treatment. Health professionals need to develop person-centred interventions that also deal with other elements of the experience of living with a long-term condition like Parkinson's disease. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Interventions to foster positive living with Parkinson's disease in clinical practice should integrate strategies to tackle and prevent loneliness and interagency elements to increase community resources and systems of support.