The association between motor subtypes and alexithymia in de novo Parkinson’s disease

This study aimed at investigating the association between motor subtypes and alexithymic features in patients with newly diagnosed untreated (de novo) Parkinson’s disease. This objective derived from empirical findings about an association between the postural instability/gait difficulty motor subtype of Parkinson’s disease and more marked symptoms of depression, an affective disorder strongly related to alexithymia. A total of 42 patients with de novo Parkinson’s disease underwent neuropsychiatric assessment, including the toronto alexithymia scale (TAS-20) and the geriatric depression scale (GDS-15). On the basis of scores reported at the unified Parkinson’s disease rating scale III section, patients were classified within postural instability/gait difficulty motor subtype tremor dominant motor subtype and mixed motor subtype. Patients of the postural instability/gait difficulty motor subtype reported significantly higher alexithymic features compared to patients of the other motor subtypes. Considering the strong association between alexithymia and depression, this finding is in line with previous findings reporting that the postural instability/gait difficulty subtype of Parkinson’s disease is associated to more marked psychopathological features, especially affective features (depression and apathy). In conclusion this brief report suggests the usefulness of an early neuropsychiatric assessment of affect regulation difficulties in PD patients, especially in those with a prevalence of akinetic/rigid symptoms.