Psychological functioning in Parkinson's disease post-deep brain stimulation: Self-regulation and executive...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Neurology
• Psychology

Background:

• Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder affecting the basal ganglia, causing motor and non-motor symptoms.
• Non-motor deficits in PD may stem from self-regulation (SR) and executive functioning (EF) impairments.
• Further investigation into the prevalence and scope of SR and EF deficits in PD is warranted.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the prevalence and range of self-regulation (SR) and executive functioning (EF) impairments in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients.
• To explore the relationship between SR, EF, and heart rate variability (HRV) in PD patients post-deep brain stimulation (DBS).

Main Methods:

• A sample of 31 PD patients undergoing DBS surgery completed neurocognitive tests, HRV assessments, and self-report questionnaires.
• Measures assessed impulse control disorder (ICD) symptoms, depressive symptoms, verbal fluency, mental flexibility, metacognition, and behavioral regulation.
• Correlations between SR, EF, and HRV were analyzed.

Main Results:

• High prevalence of impairments observed for ICD symptoms (74%), depressive symptoms (48%), verbal fluency (39%/36%), mental flexibility (32%), and self-reported SR (32%/29%).
• Modest and variable correlations between SR and EF constructs challenged the notion of SR as a unitary construct.
• Higher resting HRV was inconsistently linked to better EF and not significantly associated with self-reported SR.

Conclusions:

• PD patients exhibit diverse extra-motor deficits, including significant SR and EF impairments.
• Healthcare professionals should be aware of these deficits, especially ICDs, and their impact on patients' daily functioning.
• The findings suggest SR is a multifaceted construct, not solely reliant on a common resource, in PD patients post-DBS.