Temporal trends in the prevalence of Parkinson's disease from 1980 to 2023: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies (Level 1 by design analogy for epidemiological questions)
PubMed 38945129 · doi:10.1016/S2666-7568(24)00094-1
What was done
The authors conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies from database inception to November 1, 2023 (PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, Global Health) to evaluate temporal trends and patterns in Parkinson's disease prevalence. Studies were included if they evaluated general or community-based populations, reported prevalence with 95% CIs (or sufficient data to calculate them), and had sample sizes of at least 1,000 participants. Random-effects models pooled prevalence estimates, and estimated annual percentage change (EAPC) was calculated to assess temporal trends across 1980–2023. Subgroup analyses examined age, sex, survey period, WHO region, sociodemographic index (SDI), human development index (HDI), sample size, data source, and diagnostic criteria.
What was found
The meta-analysis analyzed 83 studies from 37 countries: - Global pooled prevalence was 1.51 cases per 1,000 (95% CI 1.19–1.88). - Prevalence was higher in males (1.54 per 1,000 [95% CI 1.17–1.96]) than in females (1.49 per 1,000 [95% CI 1.12–1.92], p = 0.030). - Prevalence across survey periods: 0.90 per 1,000 (95% CI 0.48–1.44; 1980–1989), 1.38 per 1,000 (1.17–1.61; 1990–1999), 1.18 per 1,000 (0.77–1.67; 2000–2009), and 3.81 per 1,000 (2.67–5.14; 2010–2023). - Temporal increase was faster in 2004–2023 (EAPC 16.32% [95% CI 6.07–26.58], p = 0.0040) compared to 1980–2003 (5.30% [0.82–9.79], p = 0.022). - Prevalence increased with age, reaching 9.34 cases per 1,000 (95% CI 7.26–11.67) in people older than 60 years. - Prevalence positively correlated with HDI and SDI, with significant differences across WHO regions, sample sizes, and diagnostic criteria.
Why it matters
This review demonstrates an accelerating rise in global Parkinson's disease prevalence over the past two decades, particularly among older populations and higher-resource regions. These estimates provide foundational data for long-term neurological care planning and global health resource allocation.
Limits
Significant heterogeneity was observed across studies due to differing diagnostic criteria, data sources, and sample sizes. Studies from low-SDI countries were scarce, limiting generalizability to under-resourced regions. Excluding studies with sample sizes under 1,000 may have omitted relevant smaller community surveys.
Cited by
- supports Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer's disease.