A conditioned response as a measure of impulsive-compulsive behaviours in Parkinson's disease.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Parkinson's Disease patients wore a device on the wrist that gave reminders to take levodopa and also measured bradykinesia and dyskinesia. Consumption of medications was acknowledged by placing the thumb on the device. Some patients performed this acknowledgement repeatedly and unconsciously. This study examines whether this behaviour reflected increased impulsivity.

Methods and results

Twenty five participants were selected because they had i) excess acknowledgements described above or ii) Impulsive-Compulsive Behaviours or iii) neither of these. A blinded assessor applied clinical scales to measure Impulsive-Compulsive Behaviours, cognition, depression, anxiety and apathy. A Response Ratio, representing the number of acknowledgements/number of doses (expressed

SUBMITTER: Evans AH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3933354 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature