Time interval to definite diagnosis of Parkinsonism

Background Parkinsonism is a clinical syndrome characterized by tremors rigidity, bradykinesia, and postural instability. Over the past decade there has been an increasing recognition of the broad clinical presentations of the neurodegenerative forms of Parkinsonism. Nonmotor symptoms in these diseases, including psychiatric, cognitive, autonomic, and gastrointestinal dysfunction, appear to have a major impact on quality of life and disability. Aim of the study The aim of this study is to detect the time lapse till definite diagnosis of Parkinsonism and possible etiologies and social factors that cause prolongation of that time in a hospital based study. Patient and methods We studied 80 patients with definite diagnosis of parkinsonism with specific questionnaire designed to detect the cause of delayed diagnosis applied for two weeks on a sample of patients in our department. Results Median time from the first symptom till the first medical contact was 4 months with range between 1 and 12 months. It was noticed that duration from the first medical contact till definite diagnosis was significantly shorter in those who had neurological consultation as the first contact. Time interval till first contact and time interval till definite diagnosis were significantly lower in males than females [7 (1–29) vs. 12 (1–45) months]. Conclusion Patient knowledge about Parkinsonism plays a major role in early diagnosis; most patients did not immediately recognize that their symptoms could be part of a disease. Attending non‑neurological doctors plays an important role in late diagnosis.