Effect of Systematic Survey-based Screening for Depression in Parkinson’s Disease
Megan Super1, Danielle Potts1, Carly Marshall2, Nabila Dahodwala3
1University of Pennsylvania, 2Rush University Medical Center, 3Parkinson's disease and Movement Disorders Center
Objective:
To determine the impact of systematic survey-based screening for depression on outcomes in people with Parkinson's disease (PD) in a clinical practice setting.
Background:
Depression in PD has a profound impact on disability and quality of life but is often undertreated. Universal screening for depression has been shown to successfully increase rates of depression screening. However, treatment rates remain low.1
Design/Methods:
We conducted a retrospective chart review of people with PD (PwP) seen at an academic center from 6/27/2021 to 7/1/2023. Participants completed the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS) as part of their pre-visit process. We abstracted sociodemographic and clinical data from the chart including documentation of GDS, depressive symptoms, and discussion of different treatment options. We compared PwP who completed the GDS to those who did not using t-test and chi-squared analysis.
Results:
A total of 201 charts were reviewed. 121 PwP with GDS scores (50.4% male, mean [SD] age: 69.7 [8.6] years) and 83 PwP without GDS scores (42.2% male, mean [SD] age: 72.5 [8.1] years) were included. Clinicians assessed mood symptoms in over 80% of all patients. However, only 24.8% of completed GDS scores were documented. For PwP with positive screens, 44.9% had no mention of depressive symptoms. No difference was seen in pharmacologic treatment changes between PwP with GDS scores (9.1%) versus those without (10.8%, p=0.68). PwP with positive screens were more likely to accept nonpharmacologic treatment (24.5%) versus those with negative screens (9.7%, p=0.03). PwP with a positive GDS sent a higher number of communications between visits (mean [SD] communications: 8.31 [9.92]) than those with a negative GDS (mean [SD] communications: 5.07 [5.67], p=0.03).
Conclusions:
Systematic screening for depression using the GDS did not result in widespread utilization or treatment changes. More work is needed to determine how to best implement screening measures to ensure clinician engagement and improve outcomes.
Disclaimer: Abstracts were not reviewed by Neurology® and do not reflect the views of Neurology® editors or staff.