Objective: To monitor the nutritional status of patients with Parkinson's disease using the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) questionnaire.
Patients and methods: This was a 3-year longitudinal study conducted in a national referral centre for Parkinson's disease and other movement disorders. The cohort included 61 Parkinson's disease patients, 37 men and 24 women, mean age of 70.5 +/- 5.5 years, mean duration of disease 9 +/- 6.3 years; 35 patients were followed-up after 3 years.
Results: MNA score diminished from 24.9 +/- 1.6 to 24 +/- 2.5 (P = 0.02); the proportion of patients at risk of malnutrition increased from 22.9% to 34.3%. A linear correlation was observed between MNA score and the duration of disease (P = 0.0096). The dietary assessment subscore significantly diminished (8.6 versus 8.1; P = 0.0009) as did body mass index (25.9 +/- 3.5 kg/m(2) versus 27.1 +/- 3.1 kg/m(2); P = 0.001).
Conclusions: The evaluation of nutritional status should be part of the routine work-up of a Parkinson's disease patient. Dietary education should be included amongst the therapeutic measures designed to improve the general conditions in Parkinson's disease.