title: Variations in Incidence and Prevalence of Parkinson's Disease in Taiwan: A Population-Based Nationwide Study.
abstract: Demographic, socioeconomic, and urbanization level variations in Parkinson's disease (PD) are rarely investigated, especially in Asia. This study describes an eight-year trend in PD incidence and prevalence in Taiwan as well as assessing the effects of sociodemographics and urbanization on the incidence and prevalence of PD. The data analyzed were acquired from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) entries between 2002 and 2009. The calendar year, sex, and age-specific rates were standardized, and the effects of the sociodemographics and urbanization on PD were assessed using Poisson regression analysis. PD incidence and prevalence showed a significantly increasing trend, with a greater magnitude noted for prevalence than for incidence (87.3% versus 9.2%). The PD incidence and prevalence increased with age and were slightly higher in men than in women. The people who were not under the labor force (i.e., dependents) or with lower monthly incomes were at significantly increased adjusted incidence rate ratio (1.50-1.56) and adjusted prevalence rate ratio (1.66-1.71) of PD. Moreover, significantly higher PD incidence and prevalence were noted in areas with lesser urbanization. This information emphasizes the need for preventive and clinical care strategies targeting the segment of Taiwanese population that exhibited a greater incidence and prevalence of PD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chih-Ching
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan; Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chung-Yi
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Care Management, National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences, Taipei 11219, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Pei-Chen
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, En Chu Kong Hospital, Sanxia District, New Taipei City 23702, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun