The roles of resilience and nonmotor symptoms in adjustment to Parkinson’s disease

Abstract

Resilience contributes to better chronic disease adjustment but is understudied in Parkinson’s disease. Although nonmotor symptoms affect quality of life, their effect on other aspects of Parkinson’s disease adjustment is less understood. Hierarchical regression analyses from a cross-sectional survey of 138 community-dwelling adults with Parkinson’s disease (mean (standard deviation) age = 64.15(10.09) years) investigated relationships between nonmotor symptoms and resilience on depression, apathy, life satisfaction, and quality of life. After controlling for demographic variables, functional status, and nonmotor symptoms, resilience was associated with all adjustment variables. Nonmotor symptoms were associated with depression and worse quality of life. Nonmotor symptoms and resilience appear to play critical roles in Parkinson’s disease adjustment.