Subjective Cognitive Complaints in Parkinson Disease May Signal Future Cognitive Decline
Reported by more than a third of patients with Parkinson disease (PD), subjective cognitive complaints could be a risk marker of subsequent cognitive decline, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis published in the journal Movement Disorders.
“Therefore, even in cases where there was no evidence of objective cognitive impairment and subjective changes in cognitive abilities might be thought to reflect neuropsychiatric symptoms in PD, the possibility of subsequent cognitive deterioration should not be excluded, and patients with subjective cognitive complaints must still be monitored for change and functional impact in PD,” advised corresponding author Jennifer G. Goldman MD, MS, of JPG Enterprises, Chicago, Illinois, and study coauthors.
The review and meta-analysis, which gauged the prevalence, correlates, and predictive value of subjective cognitive complaints in patients with PD, included 31 studies and a total 3441 patients.
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Meta-analysis revealed a 36% estimated overall prevalence of subjective cognitive complaints in the patient population. However, the estimate was moderated by sex, measurement instruments, clinical profile, and study exclusion of patients with objective cognitive impairment. The prevalence did not differ between treated and de novo patients.
In objective testing, subjective cognitive complaints were weakly and negligibly associated with cognitive changes. Nevertheless, they showed a 2.71 risk ratio for later cognitive decline over an average 3.16 years of follow-up in cognitively healthy patients, according to the study.
Subjective cognitive complaints were moderately associated with depression, anxiety, and apathy.
“[T]he early identification and treatment of neuropsychiatric symptoms in clinical care might help address the subjective cognitive complaints and increase the likelihood to prevent the cognitive decline,” researchers wrote.
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