Dermatoses in parkinsonism: the importance of multidisciplinary follow-up

Abstract

Summary Parkinsonism is characterized by bradykinesia with rigidity and/or resting tremor, in addition to non-motor symptoms, which include dermatological manifestations. The objective of this study is to evaluate the main dermatoses in patients with parkinsonism found at the Philanthropic Association of Curitiba - PR. A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out with the application of a questionnaire and dermatological evaluation of the patients. The sample consisted of 386 patients and was composed mainly by men (55.4%), between 60-74 years old (51.6%), with complete primary education (45.3%), disease diagnosis time between 5-10 years (35%) and in use of medication (96.6%). The most prevalent dermatoses were pigmented nevus (36.3%), warts (25.1%), actinic keratosis (22%), seborrheic keratosis (21.5%), seborrheic dermatitis (20.5%), and rosacea (19.2%). Among the 13 cases (3.4%) of malignant cutaneous neoplasms confirmed by biopsy, 2 were melanomas. Regarding patients’ sex, there was a higher prevalence of inflammatory dermatoses (OR 1.64, 95% CI 1.08-2.51, p = 0.025) and benign cutaneous neoplasms (OR 1.77, 95% CI 1.16-2.69, p = 0.01) in men. As to age, patients aged between 60-74 years had more pre-malignant skin lesions (OR 2.60, 95% CI 1.05-6.44, p <0.001) and seborrheic keratosis (OR 2.52, 95% CI 1.02-6.25, p = 0.001) and, in those older than 75 years, actinic keratosis was more frequent (OR 5.43, 95% CI 2.17-13.6, p <0.001). The results of the study show that it is fundamental to dermatologically evaluate and monitor these patients, aiming at diagnosis and early treatment of lesions, especially of skin cancer.

Parkinson's disease and skin

“…SD was first reported in parkinsonism in 1927 in a study by Krestin involving mostly patients with post-encephalitic parkinsonism [62]. It has subsequently been described in PD [63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74], drug-induced parkinsonism [75], corticobasal degeneration [76], stroke and other neurological disorders [7,77,78].…”

A Review of the Current Evidence Connecting Seborrheic Dermatitis and Parkinson’s Disease and the Potential Role of Oral Cannabinoids

“…Several studies have also demonstrated an increased prevalence of skin diseases, such as seborrheic dermatitis (SD) and melanoma among PD patients [3]. In particular, SD occurs in as many as 50–59% of PD patients and is therefore considered to be a premotor feature of the disease [4, 5].…”