Quality of life and health profile in individuals with Parkinson's

Abstract

Parkinson's disease is a pathology that affects the central nervous system (CNS) progressively causing its degeneration. This results in a decrease in the dopamine hormone, which is the neurotransmitter responsible for normal brain activity, its decrease directly linked to the appearance of the pathology. Therefore, it affects the quality of life, which is represented by the degree of satisfaction found in family, loving, social and environmental life. As a treatment, physiotherapy plays a fundamental role in improving the quality of life in order to relieve symptoms and disease progression. The aim of the study was to analyze the quality of life and the health profile of the individual with Parkinson's disease. The research is descriptive, with a cross-sectional design and a quantitative and qualitative approach. The sample consisted of 11 individuals with Parkinson's. Data collection was carried out through a mixed online questionnaire, developed through Google Docs®, containing information and general characteristics of the participants, a questionnaire on the health profile of Nottingham (PSN) and finally a questionnaire that evaluated the quality of individuals with Parkinson's (PDQ-39). The PSN questionnaire brought an average of 13.7 points indicating a worse perception of health and the PDQ-39 presented 45.8% in the average of the final score. With this study, it was possible to note that the quality of life of the participants is greatly affected due to the symptoms, degree and progression of the disease.