A prospective study of freezing of gait with early Parkinson disease in Chinese patients

This study investigated the risk factors for freezing of gait (FOG) in the early stage of Parkinson disease in China, using a sample of 248 patients who were followed for 3 years. Part III of the Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale and the modified Hoehn-Yahr grading scale were used to evaluate the severity of motor symptoms. Nonmotor symptoms were assessed using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD), and Non-Motor Symptoms Scale (NMSS). The end-point was the presence of FOG at the end of follow-up; patients with FOG were classified as freezers. The risk factors for FOG were analyzed at the end of the first, second, and third years after baseline. There were 40 freezers (16.13%) 1 year later, 98 (39.52%) 2 years later, and 128 (51.61%) 3 years later. FOG 3 years later was associated with the following variables: depression (P = 0.003), older age, living in the countryside, lower education, akinetic-rigid style, lower limbs as site of onset, early use of levodopa, higher daily dose of levodopa, and not using amantadine or selegiline and dopamine receptor agonists (P < 0.001). Early use of amantadine, selegiline, and dopamine receptor agonists was negatively related to FOG (P < 0.001). Binary logistic regression found that FOG was associated with lower education (odds ratio [OR] = 0.012, P < 0.001), akinetic-rigid style (OR = 4.881, P = 0.024), not using dopamine receptor agonists (OR = 4.324, P = 0.035), cognitive disturbances (OR = 0.331, P = 0.007), and sleep disorders (OR = 2.418, P = 0.036). However, the cardiovascular domain of the NMSS (OR = 2.729, P = 0.001) was the only risk factor for FOG 1 year later. Two years later, FOG was associated with mixed style (OR = 0.189, P = 0.005), lower limbs as site of onset (OR = 4.772, P = 0.008), not using dopamine receptor agonists (OR = 0.031, P < 0.001), and the anxiety/somatic domain of the HAMD (OR = 0.596, P = 0.033). Scores at baseline, patients with Parkinson disease were more likely to experience FOG if: they were older, or from the countryside; had an akinetic-rigid style, anxiety, or higher NMSS scores; they used levodopa early or did not use amantadine or selegiline; their lower limbs were the site of onset; or they had more severe motor disability or higher HAMD scores at baseline.