Demographic and Clinical Profiles of Parkinson's Disease in India: Observations from a Nation-Wide Multicenter Study

Parkinson's disease (PD) phenotype may vary with genetic, ethno-geographic, cultural, and environmental factors.

The aim was to develop a clinical database of PD in India and assess the influence of age-at-onset (AAO), gender, and motor subtype on the clinical profile of PD.

A cross-sectional study of PD was conducted across 18 Indian hospitals. Standardized assessments were performed by movement disorder specialists. Data were collected using uniform questionnaires during the recruitment visit. A total of 3300 age- and gender-matched case-control pairs were analyzed for environmental exposures, habits, and co-morbidities.

We recruited 7918 PD cases with a mean AAO of 54.2 ± 11.8 years and a median disease duration of 5 years (interquartile range: 2-9). Subgroup analyses based on AAO, gender, and motor phenotype revealed significant differences in motor and non-motor symptoms, exposures, habits, and co-morbidities. Except coffee consumption, previously known associations were observed for exposure to insecticides/pesticides/fungicides (odds ratio [OR]: 1.67), head injury (OR: 3.11), coffee consumption (OR: 1.73), diabetes (OR: 1.48), hypertension (OR: 1.73), and smoking (OR: 0.74) in the Indian population.

This large pan-Indian study highlights the clinical characteristics, environmental exposures, habits, and comorbid diseases associated with PD, which were broadly similar to those observed in European populations. The earlier AAO in Indian PD patients suggests a potentially higher genetic risk, warranting further investigation. A nationwide, community-based, epidemiological study is needed to achieve a comprehensive understanding of all risk factors for PD in India and to validate the risk factors identified in this hospital-based study. © 2025 The Author(s). Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.