Psycho-Physical Interactions in Parkinson’s Disease
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Psycho-Physical Interactions in Parkinson’s Disease: 12-month Cohort Study
IRAS ID
334481
Contact name
Philip Hodgson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
York St John University
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 6 months, 1 days
Research summary
Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a progressive degenerative neurological disorder affecting the physical, psychological, social, and functional state of an individual. It is characterised by symptoms including resting tremor (uncontrolled movement when at rest), bradykinesia (slowness of movement), rigidity (stiffness caused by muscles being unable to relax), and postural instability (issues with balance).
Alongside physical symptoms, individuals with PD are more likely to experience psychological symptoms such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and psychotic symptoms when compared to the general population. Despite this, current NICE guidelines do not provide recommendations for psychological difficulties in this population.
Previous research suggests that anxiety may contribute to increasing some physical symptoms such as freezing of gait. This potential relationship between physical function and psychological symptoms in PD is not well understood and is yet to be confirmed in more specific measures of physical function or considering a variety of psychological symptoms.
Our recent research has shown a trend for the functional physical ability of people with PD to reduce as scores on depression outcomes increase. To optimise patient care, any link between physical function and psychological symptoms requires further investigation and monitoring over time.
This study aims to explore the relationship between some of the common physical and psychological symptoms of PD. Within the planned research, the severity of certain physical and psychological symptoms will be monitored over time.
Psychological symptoms will be assessed through questionnaires completed at home and returned via pre-paid envelope. Physical function through assessments at the University. All assessments will be repeated at 12-months.
We hope that this study will begin to improve our knowledge of the relationship between the physical and psychological symptoms of PD, and how this develops over time. This information will allow us to suggest how to optimise assessment and treatment pathways for people with PD.
REC name
West of Scotland REC 5
REC reference
24/WS/0078
Date of REC Opinion
12 Jul 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion