Generalized anxiety disorder and the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale in Parkinson's disease.
Anxiety is common in Parkinson's disease (PD), but studies concerning specific anxiety disorders are scarce. Essential psychometric properties of anxiety rating scales are also lacking.


OBJECTIVE
To investigate general anxiety disorder (GAD) in PD and psychometric properties of the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (Ham-A).


METHODS
Ninety-one PD patients underwent neurological and psychiatric examination, which included the MINI-Plus, the Ham-A and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Ham-D).


RESULTS
GAD was present in 30.8% of PD patients. Patients with GAD had longer disease duration (p=0.044) and were in use of higher doses of levodopa (p=0.034). They also tended to have more motor fluctuations and dyskinesias. The group with GAD scored higher in Ham-A (p<0.001), in the somatic (p=0.004) and psychic (p<0.001) subscales of Ham-A, and in Ham-D (p=0.004). The Ham-A showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha=0.893) and a cutoff score of 10/11 is suggested to screen for GAD.


CONCLUSIONS
GAD is frequent in PD and the Ham-A may be a useful instrument to screen for this disorder.
Kummer
Arthur
A
Neuropsychiatric Branch, Neurology Unit, University Hospital, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. r2kummer@hotmail.com
Cardoso
Francisco
F
Teixeira
Antonio Lucio
AL
D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000523:psychology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D012372:ROC Curve; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity