Clinical Diagnosis of Parkinson Disease Not Very Accurate

Diagnosis remains problematic, a systematic review documents.

Concern has percolated over the past 2 decades that the clinical diagnosis of Parkinson disease (PD) is inaccurate in too many cases. To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of PD diagnosis in practice, researchers conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies from the past 25 years. The studies had to report the criteria for diagnosis or the raw data.

A Bayesian meta-analysis methodology was employed on 20 studies, but only 11 included postmortem diagnostic confirmation. The diagnostic accuracy for the cases with pathological confirmation was 81%. The accuracy was 74% for the diagnosis by non–movement-disorders-trained physicians, and improved to 80% in experts. The diagnostic accuracy rose to 84% if longer-term follow-up was inclu…

Reviewing Author

Michael S. Okun, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardParkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America

Speaker’s BureauMedscape/WebMD CME, Movement Disorders Society CME, American Academy of Neurology CME

RoyaltiesBooks4Patients; Demos; Cambridge; Taylor and Francis; Robert Rose; Public Affairs

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health; Parkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America; University of Florida Foundation

Editorial BoardsTremor and Other Hyperkinetic Movements; JAMA Neurology

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesParkinson’s Foundation (Medical Advisor)