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Based on published prevalence studies, we used two different methodologies to project the number of individuals with Parkinson disease (PD) in Western Europe's 5 most and the world's 10 most populous nations. The number of individuals with PD over age 50 in these countries was between 4.1 and 4.6 million in 2005 and will double to between 8.7 and 9.3 million by 2030.

Background: Batten disease (juvenile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis [JNCL]) is an autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by blindness, seizures, and relentless decline in cognitive, motor, and behavioral function. Onset is in the early school years, with progression to death typically by late adolescence. Development of a clinical instrument to quantify severity of illness is a prerequisite to eventual assessment of experimental therapeutic interventions., Objective: To develop a clinical rating instrument to assess motor, behavioral, and functional capability in JNCL., Methods: A clinical rating instrument, the Unified Batten Disease Rating Scale (UBDRS), was developed by the authors to assess motor, behavioral, and functional capability in JNCL. Children with verified JNCL were evaluated independently by three neurologists. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used to estimate the interrater reliability for total scores in each domain. Interrater reliability for scale items was assessed with weighted kappa statistics., Results: Thirty-one children with confirmed JNCL (10 boys, 21 girls) were evaluated. The mean age at symptom onset was 6.1 +/- 1.6 years, and the mean duration of illness was 9.0 +/- 4.4 years. The ICCs for the domains were as follows: motor = 0.83, behavioral = 0.68, and functional capability = 0.85., Conclusions: The Unified Batten Disease Rating Scale (UBDRS) is a reliable instrument that effectively tests for neurologic function in blind and demented patients. In its current form, the UBDRS is useful for monitoring the diverse clinical findings seen in Batten disease.

Our objective was to study the placebo response in Parkinson's disease (PD). We conducted a literature search in which placebo response was measured in all studies of PD from 1969 to April 1996. Strict criteria were defined to include or exclude published reports in our survey. The Parkinson Study Group database for Deprenyl & Tocopherol Antioxidative Therapy of Parkinsonism (DATATOP) was reviewed and placebo "responders" were compared to placebo "nonresponders" by age, race, religion, level of education, duration of PD, and gender. A significant difference between the efficacy of placebo and that of active drug was reported in 61% (22 of 36) of the articles meeting the required criteria; DATATOP analysis showed no statistically significant epidemiologic differences between 140 placebo responders and 58 placebo nonresponders except in PD effect on current job. Although there is clearly a placebo response in PD patients, our review suggests that the variation in placebo response does not correlate with demographic factors such as age, gender, religion, level of education, or duration of PD.