Dry mouth: an overlooked autonomic symptom of Parkinson's disease.
There is involvement of salivary glands by α-synuclein pathology in PD. However, the prevalence of dry mouth has not been systematically assessed in these patients. We studied 97 PD patients and 86 controls using a structured questionnaire. Dry mouth was reported by 60.8% of PD patients and 27.9% of controls (p < 0.0001). Dry mouth and drooling coexisted in 30% of cases. Only 12% of patients had reported dry mouth to their physicians. Dry mouth is a frequent but underreported symptom and may be an early manifestation of autonomic involvement in PD.
Parkinson's disease and Movement Disorders Unit, Hospital de Clinicas "Jose de San Martin", University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina. mgcersosimo@gmail.com
Maria G
MG
Cersosimo
Gabriela B
GB
Raina
Cristian R
CR
Calandra
Alejandro
A
Pellene
Cristiam
C
Gutiérrez
Federico E
FE
Micheli
Eduardo E
EE
Benarroch
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000978:Antiparkinson Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001342:Autonomic Nervous System Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007980:Levodopa / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009059:Mouth Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012798:Sialorrhea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D000978:Antiparkinson Agents; D007980:Levodopa