Older Swedish women's experiences of living with symptoms related to Parkinson's disease.
BACKGROUND
Approximately 1% of the population over 65 years of age is afflicted with Parkinson's disease (PD). The number of patients with the disease will most probably increase in the future because of the increased longevity of the population. There is no curative therapy for the disease.


OBJECTIVE
To explore women's experiences of living with symptoms related to PD, and to analyse how the symptoms influence their quality of life.


METHODS
A phenomenological-hermeneutic method, inspired by the philosophy of Ricoeur was used. The study focuses on eight women between 63 and 80 years of age who have been diagnosed with PD for 5-15 years. The women all lived at home, were moderately to severely disabled and cognitively intact.


RESULTS
In the analysis, four themes emerged: (1) wish for a stable body image; (2) wish to keep traditional female competence; (3) need to feel accepted for the person she is; and (4) perceived stigmatization. All themes showed that trying to adapt to unpredictable fluctuations in physical and psychosocial competence has a great impact on the females' lives. It became clear that fluctuations in competence and not knowing when to expect impaired mobility are connected with frustration and social withdrawal.


CONCLUSIONS
The experience of PD from eight disabled female patients has revealed that the disease affects quality of life not only for the person who has it, but also for her family. Thus, it is equally urgent that patients, relatives, nurses and caregivers gain better knowledge and more understanding of PD, so as to ease the impact of the disease on the patient's daily life.
Caap-Ahlgren
Marianne
M
Department of Community Medicine, University of Lund, Lund, Sweden. marianne.caap-ahlgren@smi.mas.lu.se
Lannerheim
Lena
L
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001828:Body Image; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000523:psychology; D011287:Prejudice; D011788:Quality of Life; D012917:Social Adjustment; D013548:Sweden