Effects of biopsychosocial approach on cognition among Parkinson's population

Cognitive decline is a debilitating symptom in Parkinson's disease (PD). Cognitive impairment in PD has a significant impact on many aspects of an individual's life, social interactions, and overall quality of life (QOL). It is also associated with a faster disease progression and an increased risk of developing dementia. A biopsychosocial approach is likely to address not only the underlying biological mechanisms of cognitive impairment in PD but also the psychological and social factors that can contribute to cognitive decline and influence treatment outcomes.

This experimental study was conducted on 60 older adults with PD at Saveetha medical college and hospital. Participants who met the inclusion criteria were randomly allocated into two groups of Biopsychosocial (n = 30) and conventional (n = 30). Participants in the intervention group received the multiple interventions based on the biopsychosocial approach with a duration of 60 min per session. Pre and post-test evaluation conducted using Scales for Outcomes in PD-cognition (SCOPA-cog) and Parkinson disease QOL Questionnaire (PDQ-8).

The results of the study showed that there is a statistically significant difference in the median scores within the Groups for the outcome measures SCOPA-cog and PDQ-8 (p < 0.001). For SCOPA-cog, the BPS group median score increased from 30 to 36, while the Conventional group median score increased from 31 to 33. For PDQ-8, the BPS group median reduced from 27 to 14, compared to the Conventional group's reduced from 30 to 24. On comparison between the post-test values, the biopsychosocial approach group showed more improvement in cognition and QOL with (p < 0.001).

The findings of this study concluded that the biopsychosocial approach is effective in improving cognition and QOL among the Parkinson population.