Prevalence of Parkinson's disease in lower Aragon, Spain

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Abstract
OBJECTIVE We attempted to measure the prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) and to improve PD diagnosis in Lower Aragon (LA), a rural area located in northeast Spain with an elderly population numbering 60,724. METHODS Hospital records and a questionnaire targeted at general practitioners and retirement home personnel were used for case finding. Neurologic diagnoses were ascertained by a neurologist using a clinicoepidemiologic protocol and established diagnostic criteria after examining 84% of patients diagnosed with PD. Using stratified analysis, a comparison was run against reported PD prevalence from worldwide door‐to‐door surveys. RESULTS On the prevalence date, 134 individuals were found to be affected with PD. The prevalence per 100,000 population was 220.6 (crude) and 121.9 when age‐adjusted using the European Standard Population. Prevalence increased with age, declining at 90 years and over. Questionnaires returned by general practitioners disclosed 20% of the prevalent PD cases. The prevalence of PD in pooled European populations was 2.56 times (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.02–3.24) greater than that found in our study. CONCLUSION PD prevalence in Lower Aragon ranks at levels similar to those reported for white populations (European and non‐European). One out of two individuals with PD was estimated to be undiagnosed before and three out of eight after the study.