Prevalence of Parkinson's Disease: A Community-Based Study in China.

BACKGROUND: China's socioeconomic and population structures have evolved markedly during the past few decades, and consequently, monitoring the prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) is crucial. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of PD within Chinese communities, particularly in older people. METHODS: A nationwide study of 24,117 participants, aged 60 years or older, was carried out in 2015 using multistage clustered sampling. All participants were initially screened using a nine-item questionnaire, from which those suspected of having PD were examined by neurologists and a diagnosis was given, according to the 2015 Movement Disorder Society Clinical Diagnostic Criteria. RESULTS: The prevalence of PD was 1.37% (95% confidence interval 1.02%-1.73%) in people aged over 60 years. Thus, the estimated total number of people in China with PD could be as high as 3.62 million. CONCLUSIONS: Although the PD population prevalence percentage did not change significantly, the total number of PD sufferers has increased with the increased population, which poses a significant challenge in a rapidly aging population. © 2021 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

Risk Factors for In-Hospital Mortality in Heart Failure Patients: Does Rurality, Payer or Admission Source Matter?

PURPOSE: Considering the high prevalence of heart failure and the economic burden of the disease, factors that influence in-hospital mortality are of importance in improving outcomes of care for this patient population. The purpose of this study was to examine the determinants of in-hospital mortality for adult heart failure patients. METHODS: The study design is a retrospective observational study design using the 2010 Nebraska Hospital Discharge data set including 4,319 hospitalizations for 3,521 heart failure patients admitted to 79 hospitals in Nebraska. Hierarchical logistic regression models including patient- and hospital-specific random intercepts were analyzed. Covariates included in the analysis were patient age in years, gender, comorbidity status, length of stay, primary payer, type and source of admission, transfers, and rurality of county of residence. RESULTS: Overall, 3.5% of heart failure patients died during their hospital stay. In logistic regression analysis that adjusted for age, sex, and comorbidities, the odds of dying in hospital for heart failure patients increased with age (OR = 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.04), co-morbidity (OR = 1.15; 95% CI: 1.05-1.25) and length of stay (OR = 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.05). The patient's gender, payer source, rurality of county of residence, source, and type of admission were not risk factors for in-hospital death. CONCLUSION: Increasing age, comorbidity and length of stay were risk factors for in-hospital death for heart failure. An understanding of the risk factors for in-hospital death is critical to improving outcomes of care for heart failure patients.