Disturbance of spontaneous and posed facial expressions in Parkinson's disease

• Published in: Cognition and emotion Vol. 17; no. 5; pp. 759 - 778
• Main Authors: Simons, Gwenda, Ellgring, Heiner, Smith Pasqualini, Marcia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hove Taylor & Francis Group 01.09.2003; Psychology Press
• Subjects: Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Biological and medical sciences; Control; Degenerative and inherited degenerative diseases of the nervous system. Leukodystrophies. Prion diseases; Facial expressions; Facial muscles; Medical sciences; Neurology; Organic mental disorders. Neuropsychology; Parkinson's disease; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Spontaneity; Human; Nervous system diseases; Parkinson disease; Cognition; Emotion emotionality; Cerebral disorder; Central nervous system disease; Body movement; Degenerative disease; Face; Motricity; Facial expression; Extrapyramidal syndrome
• ISSN: 0269-9931; 1464-0600
• DOI: 10.1080/02699930302280

The effects of Parkinson's disease (PD) on spontaneous and posed facial activity and on the control of facial muscles were assessed by comparing 22 PD patients with 22 controls. Facial activity was analysed using the Facial Action Coding System (FACS; Ekman & Friesen, 1978). As predicted, PD patients showed reduced levels of spontaneous and posed facial expression in reaction to unpleasant odours compared to controls. PD patients were less successful than controls in masking or intensifying negative facial expressions. PD patients were also less able than controls to imitate specific facial muscle movements, but did not differ in the ability to pose emotional facial expressions. These results suggest that not only is spontaneous facial activity disturbed in PD, but also to some degree the ability to pose facial expressions, to mask facial expressions with other expressions, and to deliberately move specific muscles in the face.