ArticleNPJ Parkinson's disease2021
Cholinesterase inhibitors for gait, balance, and fall in Parkinson disease: a meta-analysis.
Article in NPJ Parkinson's disease, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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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.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 25 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effects of rivastigmine on gait in patients with neurodegenerative disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis.PloS one · 2024Pooled it
- The central cholinergic system as a therapeutic target in Parkinson's disease.Journal of Parkinson's disease · 2026Review
- Current and emerging drugs for Parkinson's disease: mechanisms, clinical evidence, and future directions.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Cholinergic System Changes in Dopa-Unresponsive Freezing of Gait in Parkinson's Disease.Movement disorders : official journal of the Movement Disorder Society · 2025Article
- The basal forebrain cholinergic system as target for cell replacement therapy in Parkinson's disease.Brain : a journal of neurology · 2024Review
- Paradigm Shift: Multiple Potential Pathways to Neurodegenerative Dementia.Neurotherapeutics : the journal of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics · 2023Article
- Prevention of Falls in Parkinson's Disease: Guidelines and Gaps.Movement disorders clinical practice · 2023Review
- Cholinergic system correlates of postural control changes in Parkinson's disease freezers.Brain : a journal of neurology · 2023Article
- Plasma extracellular vesicle tau, β-amyloid, and α-synuclein and the progression of Parkinson's disease: a follow-up study.Therapeutic advances in neurological disorders · 2023Article
- The PPN and motor control: Preclinical studies to deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease.Frontiers in neural circuits · 2023Review
- Donepezil Beyond Alzheimer's Disease? A Narrative Review of Therapeutic Potentials of Donepezil in Different Diseases.Iranian journal of pharmaceutical research : IJPR · 2022Review
- Distinct atrophy of septal nuclei in Parkinson's disease.Clinical parkinsonism & related disorders · 2022Article
- Rivastigmine for parkinsonian symptoms in dementia with Lewy bodies: a paradigm shift.Neurodegenerative disease managementArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Gait disturbance and imbalance are the major symptoms of Parkinson disease (PD), with fall being the most undesirable consequence. However, few effective evidence-based treatments are available for alleviating these symptoms and preventing falls. Cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs) are a well-established treatment for PD dementia with possible impacts on gait, balance, and fall reduction. The present study involved a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to investigate the effects of ChEIs on gait, balance, and fall in patients with PD. We searched for studies using the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases. The major outcomes were effects on gait parameters, balance, and fall. This study was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021254733). Five RCTs were included in the present meta-analysis. ChEIs did not significantly increase gait speed in PD patients (mean difference [MD]: 0.03 m/s, 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.02 to 0.07, p = 0.29). However, ChEI treatment significantly decreased step or stride variability during the single task (standard MD: -0.43, 95% CI = -0.79 to -0.06, p = 0.02). Regarding fall and balance, trending but nonsignificant beneficial effects were observed with ChEI treatment. In conclusion, although ChEI treatment did not significantly improve gait speed and reduce fall, it can significantly reduce step or stride variability. Considering that gait disorder is a challenging issue in patients with PD and that ChEIs are generally tolerable, the present meta-analysis may provide more evidence for the benefit of ChEIs on PD gait disturbance as an alternative treatment consideration.
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Registered trials
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.