The clinical characteristics of lower back pain in Parkinson’s Disease

J Korean Neurol Assoc > Volume 24(5); 2006 > Article

Journal of the Korean Neurological Association 2006;24(5): 452-457.

파킨슨병 환자에서의 허리통증 특성

김성렬, 정선주 성영희 김미선 이명종

울산대학교 의과대학 신경과학교실

The clinical characteristics of lower back pain in Parkinson’s Disease

Sung Reul Kim

Department of Neurology, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Background: Lower back pain (LBP) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) is common but frequently overlooked, due to the tendencies of focusing on the management of the motor symptoms and signs by most neurologists. Uncontrolled LBP may impact on the activities of daily living of the PD patients. However, study on the LBP in PD has been rarely reported.
Methods: Sixty three PD patients with LBP were included, between October 2004 and April 2005. We investigated the clinical characteristics of LBP and response to the management prospectively.
Results: Eleven male and 52 female patients were included and the mean age was 64.4 years. On lumbar MRI and/or X-ray, degenerative spondylosis was detected in 22 patients, bulging discs in 30, and fractures in 9. Fourteen patients reported improvement of LBP after levodopa therapy. Young age at onset and abnormally flexed posture correlated with the responsiveness of LBP to levodopa therapy (p<0.05, respectively). These responders were more frequently experiencing motor fluctuation and dyskinesia than the non-responders (p<0.05, respectively).
Conclusions: LBP in PD has diverse etiologies and clinical features. Some PD patients with LBP show response to levodopa therapy. We suggest that the prudent evaluation and proper management of LBP are important to achieve the better activities of daily living in PD patients. KeyWords:Parkinson's disease, Lower back pain, Levodopa