Sudden unexpected death in Parkinson's disease: Insights from clinical practice

• Published in: Clinics (São Paulo, Brazil) Vol. 77; p. 100001
• Main Authors: Scorza, Fulvio A., Guimarães-Marques, Marcia, Nejm, Mariana, de Almeida, Antônio Carlos G., Scorza, Carla A., Fiorini, Ana C., Finsterer, Josef
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Portuguese
• Published: United States Elsevier España, S.L.U 01.01.2022; Hospital das Clinicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Sao Paulo; Faculdade de Medicina / USP
• Subjects: Death, Sudden - etiology; Heart; Humans; MEDICINE, GENERAL & INTERNAL; Parkinson Disease - complications; Parkinson's disease; Prevention; Review; Sudden death; Heart; Prevention; Parkinson's disease; Sudden death
• ISSN: 1807-5932; 1980-5322; 1980-5322
• DOI: 10.1016/j.clinsp.2021.100001

•To reduce the risk of and prevent sudden unexpected death in Parkinson's disease (SUDPAR) translational research and public campaigns are warranted.•Patients with Parkinson's disease should be regularly monitored for cardiac, pulmonary, and autonomic disorders. Classified as the second most common neurodegenerative disorder associated with aging after Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease (PD) is the most common movement disorder. In the last decade, despite advances in treatment, mortality rates linked with PD continued to reach significant figures. Available studies have shown that compared with healthy controls, patients with PD are accompanied by high rates of premature death. This is usually caused by factors such as pneumonia and cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases. Recently, it has been demonstrated that a significant proportion of patients with PD die suddenly. This is referred to as a sudden and unexpected death in PD (SUDPAR). Here, we focus on the magnitude of SUDPAR. Finally, it is important to learn more about SUDPAR for the implementation of effective prevention strategies.