Affiliations: Department of Neurology, Odense University Hospital & Institute of Clinical Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark | Danish Cancer Society Research Centre, Danish Cancer Society, Copenhagen, Denmark | Department of Epidemiology, UCLA School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Note: [] Correspondence to: Thomas Krøigård, Department of Neurology, Odense University Hospital, & Institute of Clinical Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Sdr. Boulevard 29, 5000 Odense C, Denmark. Tel.: +45 65412471; Fax: +45 65413389; E-mail: tkroigaard@health.sdu.dk
Abstract: Previous studies have suggested that dopamine agonists have an antidepressant effect in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. We examined whether fewer PD patients used antidepressant medication, when they were first treated with a dopamine agonist compared to other PD medications. PD patients diagnosed in Denmark were identified, and the diagnosis was confirmed by a review of the medical record. Antidepressant medication was assessed using the Danish National Prescription Registry. We used Cox proportional hazards regression to model the association between PD medications and time to antidepressant prescription. The type of PD medication first prescribed did not affect the subsequent use of antidepressants.
