Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients, especially those on dopamine agonists (DA), are at risk of impulse control disorders (ICD). Little attention has been paid to the influence of environmental factors. This article represents a retrospective analysis of consecutive PD patients seen in an outpatient Movement Disorders Clinic during 2 months (September-November 2020) to explore the frequency of ICD during the preceding 2-month lockdown period, and comparison with an equivalent control group (September-November 2019). Among 114 patients assessed, 15 (13%) presented ICD during the lockdown, versus 6 (4.5%, P 0.02) in the control group. When analyzing only patients on DA, ICD occurrence increased to 31% (vs. 9.6% pre-lockdown, P 0.026). ICD during lockdown required drug regime adjustment in 80% (vs. 16.7% pre-lockdown, P 0.014). The authors concluded that during COVID-19 lockdown, the occurrence of ICD in PD patients taking DA was higher than expected, and with increased severity. Environmental stressors may play a role in ICD presentation in vulnerable patients.
Rábano-Suárez P, Martínez-Fernández R, Natera-Villalba E, Pareés I, Martínez-Castrillo JC, Alonso-Canovas A. Impulse Control Disorders in Parkinson’s Disease: Has COVID-19 Related Lockdown Been a Trigger? Mov Disord Clin Pract. 2021 Jul 9;8(6):940-943. doi: 10.1002/mdc3.13276.