title: The frequency of buccopalpebral reflex in Parkinson disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to define the frequency of a primitive reflex, the buccopalpebral reflex (BPR), and its association with the clinical situation in patients with Parkinson disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between May 2010 and May 2011, 222 patients, 115 with Parkinson disease and 107 patients without any sign of neurodegenerative disease, were included in the study. All included patients were examined for BPR and snout reflex and were also evaluated with the Mini Mental State Examination. All patients with Parkinson disease were classified with the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) and the Hoehn and Yahr Score to determine their clinical severity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Sixteen patients with Parkinson disease (13.9%) had a BPR (+) and 4 patients in the control group (3.7%) (P < 0.001). The UPDRS score, UPDRS daily life activities score, and UPDRS motor system score were all higher in the group with BPR (+). All patients with a BPR also had a positive snout reflex.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BPR is more frequent in patients with Parkinson disease than in patients without a neurodegenerative disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Antakya Hospital, Hatay, Turkey.
authors.forename: Hülya
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Eser
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Muğla, Turkey.
authors.forename: Yasemin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ünal
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Muğla, Turkey.
authors.forename: Gülnihal
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kutlu
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Başkent University, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ruhsen
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Öcal
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Bozok University, Yozgat, Turkey.
authors.forename: Levent Ertuğrul
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: İnan
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D010300:Parkinson Disease; D012018:Reflex; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
keywords: Buccopalpebral reflex; Parkinson disease; primitive reflex