A door-to-door survey of Parkinson's disease in a Chinese population in Kinmen
S. J. Wang, J. L. Fuh, E. L. Teng, C. Y. Liu, K. P. Lin, H. M. Chen, C. H. Lin, P. N. Wang, Y. C. Ting, H. C. Wang, K. N. Lin, P. Chou, E. B. Larson and H. C. Liu
Neurological Institute, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei, Taiwan.
BACKGROUND: Most published studies have shown lower prevalence rates of
Parkinson's disease (PD) in Asian and black African than in Western
countries, leading to the hypothesis that Asians and blacks might be
protected from PD. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of PD in a
Chinese population. DESIGN: Community-based survey. SETTING: Registered
residents 50 years of age or older (N = 5061) on the islet of Kinmen
located off the southeastern coast of China [corrected]. METHOD:
Single-phase door-to-door survey by neurologists. All participants were
administered a questionnaire and received motor examinations of the Unified
Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale. RESULTS: The participation rate was 96%
(N = 3915) among 4158 contacted individuals. Twenty-three cases of PD were
identified, including three cases with dementia. The crude prevalence rate
of PD was 587 (95% confidence interval (CI), 373 to 884) per 100,000
persons 50 years of age or older. Assuming no case of PD among individuals
under 50 years of age, the prevalence rate was 119 (95% CI, 80 to 169) per
100,000 for the total population. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence rates of PD
in Kinmen were much higher than those reported from mainland China, but
slightly lower than those reported from more developed countries. The
present findings suggest that, instead of genetic factors, differences in
case-ascertainment, life expectancy, and the length of survival with PD may
be more important contributors to the variations in observed PD prevalence
rates.
