Prevalence of Parkinson's Disease: A Community‐Based Study in China

BACKGROUND: China's socioeconomic and population structures have evolved markedly during the past few decades, and consequently, monitoring the prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) is crucial. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of PD within Chinese communities, particularly in older people. METHODS: A nationwide study of 24,117 participants, aged 60 years or older, was carried out in 2015 using multistage clustered sampling. All participants were initially screened using a nine-item questionnaire, from which those suspected of having PD were examined by neurologists and a diagnosis was given, according to the 2015 Movement Disorder Society Clinical Diagnostic Criteria. RESULTS: The prevalence of PD was 1.37% (95% confidence interval 1.02%-1.73%) in people aged over 60 years. Thus, the estimated total number of people in China with PD could be as high as 3.62 million. CONCLUSIONS: Although the PD population prevalence percentage did not change significantly, the total number of PD sufferers has increased with the increased population, which poses a significant challenge in a rapidly aging population.