Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33492244›Full record

ReviewJournal of Parkinson's disease2021

Parkinson's Disease and the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Conor Fearon, Alfonso Fasano

Open access · hybridAbstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Journal of Parkinson's disease, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 53 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
53citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
9.4field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

53 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 95 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Digital Inclusion in Parkinson's Disease: A Case-Control Study.Movement disorders clinical practice · 2025
    Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Review
  11. Article
  12. Movement Disorders and SARS-CoV-2.Movement disorders clinical practice · 2023
    Article
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Review
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Review
  19. Observational
  20. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Conor FearonEdmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson's Disease, Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto Western Hospital - UHN, Division of Neurology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Alfonso FasanoEdmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson's Disease, Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto Western Hospital - UHN, Division of Neurology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
University of Toronto · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Studies focusing on the relationship between severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and Parkinson's disease (PD) have provided conflicting results. We review the literature to investigate: 1) Are PD patients at higher risk for contracting COVID-19 and are there specific contributing factors to that risk? 2) How does COVID-19 affect PD symptoms? 3) How does COVID-19 present in PD patients? 4) What are the outcomes in PD patients who contract COVID-19? 5) What is the impact of COVID-19 on PD care? 6) Does COVID-19 increase the risk of developing PD? A literature search was performed from 1979 to 2020 using the terms: 'Parkinson's disease' and 'parkinsonism' combined with: 'COVID-19'; 'SARS-CoV-2' and 'coronavirus'. It does not appear that PD is a specific risk factor for COVID-19. There is evidence for direct/indirect effects of SARS-CoV-2 on motor/non-motor symptoms of PD. Although many PD patients present with typical COVID-19 symptoms, some present atypically with isolated worsening of parkinsonian symptoms, requiring increased anti-PD therapy and having worse outcomes. Mortality data on PD patients with COVID-19 is inconclusive (ranging from 5.2%to 100%). Patients with advanced PD appear to be particularly vulnerable. Single cases of acute hypokinetic-rigid syndrome have been described but no other convincing data has been reported. The rapidity with which COVID-19 has swept across the globe has favored the proliferation of studies which lack scientific rigor and the PD literature has not been immune. A coordinated effort is required to assimilate data and answer these questions in larger PD cohorts.

Indexed as

Antiparkinson AgentsCOVID-19COVID-19 Drug TreatmentHumansMortalityPandemicsParkinson DiseaseRisk FactorsAntiparkinson AgentsCOVID-19Parkinson’s diseasereview

Identifiers

PMID33492244
PMCPMC8150477
OpenAlexW3125923246

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.