Session Information
Date: Monday, September 23, 2019
Session Title: Clinical Trials, Pharmacology and Treatment
Session Time: 1:45pm-3:15pm
Location: Agora 3 West, Level 3
Objective: The objective of our research was to investigate the asymmetry of motor symptoms in patients with Parkinson’s Disease (PD).
Background: In most PD cases there is a substantial asymmetry of clinical symptoms from disease onset, which occurs in sporadic and in hereditary forms of the disease. The mechanism of such unilaterality of symptom appearance is not understood. There is only information about whether symptom-side predominance is genetically coded and determined years before symptom onset, or whether it is acquired and related to side differences in vulnerability of the degenerating neurons [1].
Method: 230 consecutive patients with idiopathic PD (151 males and 79 females, age range from 35 to 88) were questioned at time of routine clinic visits. Average duration of PD was 8.11 ± 0.39 years.
Results: There were symmetrical motor symptoms (bradykinesia, tremor, rigidity) in 11 (4.78%) patients with PD. The motor symptoms were more pronounced on the right in 107 (46.52%) PD patients and on the left in 112 (48.7%) PD patients. Fig. 1 shows the asymmetry scores according to the UPDRS in patients with PD. [figure1] The proportion of PD patients with mildly asymmetric motor symptoms was 29.13% (67 patients), with moderately asymmetric – 39.13% (90 patients), and severely asymmetric bradykinesia, tremor and rigidity were observed in 62 patients (26.96%). [figure2]
Conclusion: PD was characterized by an asymmetric motor onset (100.0%) and an asymmetric disease progression (95.22%). According to PD progression the severity of motor symptoms was usually predominates on the side of motor onset. The frequency of PD motor onset on the dominant side of the body was significantly exceeded than on the subdominant side (62.61% vs. 36.52%, p < 0.001).
References: 1. Djaldetti, R., Ziv, I., & Melamed, E. (2006). The mystery of motor asymmetry in Parkinson’s disease. The Lancet Neurology, 5(9), 796-802.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
Y. Trufanov, N. Svyrydova, V. Svistun, I. Harkava, H. Bondarenko, N. Zhhilova. Asymmetry of motor symptoms in patients with Parkinson’s Disease [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2019; 34 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/asymmetry-of-motor-symptoms-in-patients-with-parkinsons-disease/. Accessed May 16, 2025.« Back to 2019 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/asymmetry-of-motor-symptoms-in-patients-with-parkinsons-disease/