Greater and Clinically Meaningful Improvement in Health-Related Quality of Life After Device-Aided Therapy in Younger Patients Earlier Within Advanced Parkinson’s Disease: Real-World Evidence from the DATs-PD GETM Spanish Registry

Background and objective: Device-aided therapies (DATs) are established treatments for Parkinson’s disease (PD) with motor fluctuations insufficiently controlled by conventional therapy, but their optimal timing remains uncertain. We investigated whether younger patients earlier within advanced PD (yeaPD) experience greater health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) improvement after DAT initiation. Methods: Data were obtained from the prospective, multicenter DATs-PD GETM Spanish Registry. yeaPD was defined as age ≤65 years, Hoehn and Yahr stage ≤2 in the ON state, and ≤5 years since motor fluctuation onset. HRQoL was assessed using the Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire Summary Index (PDQ-39SI) at baseline and 6 ± 3 months. Results: Of 510 patients, 133 (26.1%) fulfilled yeaPD criteria. Paired data were available for 148 patients (36 yeaPD; 112 non-yeaPD). PDQ-39SI improved from 31.7 ± 13.8 to 21.9 ± 16.0 in yeaPD and from 38.5 ± 15.6 to 34.8 ± 17.1 in non-yeaPD (relative improvements: 30.9% vs. 9.6%; p = 0.032). The group-by-time interaction remained significant after adjustment for sex, principal caregiver, DAT type, time since PD diagnosis, and baseline levodopa equivalent daily dose (F = 4.565, p = 0.035), and after additionally adjusting for changes in motor and non-motor symptom burden (F = 4.460, p = 0.037). Clinically relevant HRQoL improvement occurred in 75.0% versus 53.6% (p = 0.023; OR 2.60, 95% CI 1.12–6.03). Mobility and stigmatization remained significant after multiplicity correction. Conclusions: DAT initiation while patients remain younger and functionally less advanced was associated with greater, clinically meaningful HRQoL improvement.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Medical Sciences
Published
2026-09-24
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/medsci14060602
Primary Topic
Parkinson's Disease Mechanisms and Treatments
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
article

Greater and Clinically Meaningful Improvement in Health-Related Quality of Life After Device-Aided Therapy in Younger Patients Earlier Within Advanced Parkinson’s Disease: Real-World Evidence from the DATs-PD GETM Spanish Registry

Diego Santos‐García, Ana Belén Perona Moratalla, Roberto López‐Blanco, Ángela Solleiro Vidal et al.
Medical Sciences
Parkinson's Disease Mechanisms and Treatments
article

Greater and Clinically Meaningful Improvement in Health-Related Quality of Life After Device-Aided Therapy in Younger Patients Earlier Within Advanced Parkinson’s Disease: Real-World Evidence from the DATs-PD GETM Spanish Registry

Diego Santos‐García, Ana Belén Perona Moratalla, Roberto López‐Blanco, Ángela Solleiro Vidal, Guillermo González‐Ortega, Lydia López Manzanares, Berta Solano, Juan Carlos Gómez‐Esteban, Irene Martínez‐Torres, Pedro Ruiz, Silvia Martí Martínez, Isabel Pareés Moreno, Esther Cubo, Tania Delgado Ballestero, Sonia Escalante, Jéssica González Ardura, Carmen Borrué Fernández, DATs-PD GETM Spanish Registry Group, Celia Delgado Suárez, Maria Pilar Gil Martín, Ángela Monterde Ortega
article en

Abstract

Background and objective: Device-aided therapies (DATs) are established treatments for Parkinson’s disease (PD) with motor fluctuations insufficiently controlled by conventional therapy, but their optimal timing remains uncertain. We investigated whether younger patients earlier within advanced PD (yeaPD) experience greater health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) improvement after DAT initiation. Methods: Data were obtained from the prospective, multicenter DATs-PD GETM Spanish Registry. yeaPD was defined as age ≤65 years, Hoehn and Yahr stage ≤2 in the ON state, and ≤5 years since motor fluctuation onset. HRQoL was assessed using the Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire Summary Index (PDQ-39SI) at baseline and 6 ± 3 months. Results: Of 510 patients, 133 (26.1%) fulfilled yeaPD criteria. Paired data were available for 148 patients (36 yeaPD; 112 non-yeaPD). PDQ-39SI improved from 31.7 ± 13.8 to 21.9 ± 16.0 in yeaPD and from 38.5 ± 15.6 to 34.8 ± 17.1 in non-yeaPD (relative improvements: 30.9% vs. 9.6%; p = 0.032). The group-by-time interaction remained significant after adjustment for sex, principal caregiver, DAT type, time since PD diagnosis, and baseline levodopa equivalent daily dose (F = 4.565, p = 0.035), and after additionally adjusting for changes in motor and non-motor symptom burden (F = 4.460, p = 0.037). Clinically relevant HRQoL improvement occurred in 75.0% versus 53.6% (p = 0.023; OR 2.60, 95% CI 1.12–6.03). Mobility and stigmatization remained significant after multiplicity correction. Conclusions: DAT initiation while patients remain younger and functionally less advanced was associated with greater, clinically meaningful HRQoL improvement.

Medical SciencesVol. 14(6)
Hospital Universitari Arnau de Vilanova (ES), Hospital Universitari i Politècnic La Fe (ES), Biomedical Research Networking Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (ES), Hospital Son Llatzer (ES), Corporació Sanitària Parc Taulí (ES), Hospital Universitario de Burgos (ES), Hospital Santa Caterina (ES), Hospital de Sabadell (ES), Hospital Universitario Fundación Jiménez Díaz (ES), Hospital Universitario de La Princesa (ES), Hospital de Cruces (ES), Hospital General Universitario de Alicante Doctor Balmis (ES), Complexo Hospitalario Universitario A Coruña (ES), Hospital Universitario De Cabueñes (ES), Hospital Universitari Joan XXIII de Tarragona (ES), Hospital Universitari de Tortosa Verge de la Cinta (ES), Hospital Universitari de Girona Doctor Josep Trueta (ES), Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Albacete (ES), Hospital Universitario San Rafael (ES), Hospital Universitario de Móstoles (ES), Hospital Universitario Severo Ochoa (ES), Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de A Coruña (ES), Hospital Universitario Infanta Sofía (ES), Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal (ES)
Openalex Percentile: Top 12%
Parkinson's Disease Mechanisms and Treatments
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.