Association between the dose of dopaminergic medication and the behavioral disturbances in Parkinson disease

ObjectivesTo survey the point prevalence of impulse control and repetitive behavior disorders (ICRBs) in patients with Parkinson disease (PD) and to determine the relationship between PD medication dose and the risk of ICRBs.MethodsA multicenter cross-sectional survey was applied to consecutive patients with PD over a 3-month period. The presence of ICRBs was screened using a modified version of the Minnesota Impulsive Disorders Interview that comprised five ICRB modules: compulsive buying, gambling, sexual behavior, eating, and punding. Data regarding the patients' clinical features and concurrent anti-PD drugs were also collected during the interview. Adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of the daily doses of dopamine agonist and l-dopa for the development of an ICRB were calculated after adjustment for clinical variables.ResultsAmong the 1167 patients recruited, 118 (10.1%) exhibited ICRBs. Punding was the most common ICRB (4.2%), followed by compulsive eating (3.4%), sexual behaviors (2.8%), buying (2.5%), and gambling (1.3%). Two or more ICRBs were present concomitantly in 34 of these 118 patients (28.8%). There were dose–response relationships between the dopamine agonist dose and the ORs for compulsive buying, gambling and sexual behaviors. On the other hand, the OR for punding was positively correlated with the dose of l-dopa. The OR for compulsive eating was not associated with the dose of dopamine agonist or l-dopa.ConclusionsThe dose of dopaminergic medication is significantly associated with the development of ICRB, except compulsive eating, in PD.