Prevalence of Parkinson's Disease: A Community‐Based Study in China

Background China's socioeconomic and population structures have evolved markedly during the past few decades, and consequently, monitoring the prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) is crucial. Objective This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of PD within Chinese communities, particularly in older people. Methods A nationwide study of 24,117 participants, aged 60 years or older, was carried out in 2015 using multistage clustered sampling. All participants were initially screened using a nine‐item questionnaire, from which those suspected of having PD were examined by neurologists and a diagnosis was given, according to the 2015 Movement Disorder Society Clinical Diagnostic Criteria. Results The prevalence of PD was 1.37% (95% confidence interval 1.02%–1.73%) in people aged over 60 years. Thus, the estimated total number of people in China with PD could be as high as 3.62 million. Conclusions Although the PD population prevalence percentage did not change significantly, the total number of PD sufferers has increased with the increased population, which poses a significant challenge in a rapidly aging population. © 2021 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society