title: Prevalence and clinical correlates of drooling in Parkinson disease: a study on 518 Chinese patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The prevalence and clinical correlates of drooling in Chinese patients with Parkinson disease (PD) are unknown.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional analysis of 518 Chinese patients with PD was conducted. Assessments included Unified PD Rating Scale (UPDRS), Non-Motor Symptoms Scale (NMSS), Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD), Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA), PD Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39), Frontal assessment battery (FAB) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two hundred and seventy-three PD patients (52.7%) reported drooling (droolers). Drooling occurred more frequently in the late-onset PD patients than the early-onset PD patients (p < 0.05). Droolers had higher levodopa equivalent daily doses, higher incidences of dysarthria, dysphagia and fluctuation, higher scores for the UPDRS part III, NMSS, HAMD and HAMA, and higher scores for the mobility, activities of daily life, stigma and communication subdomains of the PDQ-39 than the non-droolers (p < 0.05). The percentage of benzhexol use in the non-droolers was significantly higher than the droolers (p < 0.05). The FAB and MoCA scores between the droolers and non-droolers were not different. The binary logistic regression analysis indicated that dysarthria, dysphagia, benzhexol use, and a lower score for the naming domain of the MoCA were associated with drooling.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Drooling is a relatively common disabling symptom in Chinese PD patients. Patients with dysarthria, dysphagia and naming disorder are likely to experience drooling. Drooling is not correlated with disease duration and motor severity of PD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Ruwei
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ou
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoyan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Qianqian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Bei
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Bi
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Xueping
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, 610041 Chengdu, Sichuan, China. Electronic address: hfshang2002@126.com.
authors.forename: Huifang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shang
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012798:Sialorrhea / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Drooling; Dysarthria; Dysphagia; Naming disorder; Parkinson disease; Prevalence