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Depression, intellectual impairment, and Parkinson disease
Mayeux R, Stern Y, Rosen J, Leventhal J.. Neurology, 1981-06-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
To determine the prevalence of depression in Parkinson disease (PD) we evaluated 55 consecutive patients without dementia and 31 of their spouses. All subjects completed the Beck depression inventory and a quantitative mini-mental state examination. Using the Beck criteria, 47% of the patients and 12% of the spouses rated themselves as significantly depressed. Mental state scores were significantly lower in the patients. There was a correlation between the severity of depression and cognitive impairment, particularly for calculation, digit span, and visuomotor skills. The severity of parkinsonism, particularly bradykinesia, also paralleled cognition. There was a slight but significant relationship between parkinsonism and depression. These results confirm the high incidence of depression in PD, and suggest that depression in Parkinson patients may be accompanied by mild intellectual impairment and inattention which is independent of the severity of the illness.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Mayeux, R., Stern, Y., Rosen, J., & Leventhal, J. (1981). Depression, intellectual impairment, and Parkinson disease. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.31.6.645
Vancouver
Mayeux R, Stern Y, Rosen J, Leventhal J. Depression, intellectual impairment, and Parkinson disease. Neurology. 1981. doi:10.1212/wnl.31.6.645. PMID: 7195481.
BibTeX
@article{mayeux1981-7195481,
author = {Mayeux, R. and Stern, Y. and Rosen, J. and Leventhal, J.},
title = {{Depression, intellectual impairment, and Parkinson disease}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {1981},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.31.6.645},
pmid = {7195481},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.31.6.645}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Using the Beck criteria, 47% of the patients and 12% of the spouses rated themselves as significantly depressed.
- Mental state scores were significantly lower in the patients.
- There was a slight but significant relationship between parkinsonism and depression.
- These results confirm the high incidence of depression in PD, and suggest that depression in Parkinson patients may be accompanied by mild intellectual impairment and inattention which is independent of the severity of the illness.
Why it matters
This study found that depression was common in patients with Parkinson disease without dementia and was correlated with mild intellectual impairment. It concerns depression and cognition in Parkinson disease and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 48/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on senior author's track record, so that was left out: it earned 46 of the 96 points we could judge it on, which is 48 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1981 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 577 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 12.3 citations a year over 47 year(s) since 1981 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 15.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 8 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 3 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | OpenAlex's profile for last-listed author Jean Leventhal holds only 1 work(s), too few to judge a track record — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Columbia University: institution h-index 1,824 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 7195481) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 46 / 96 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 46 of the 96 points we could judge it on is 48 out of 100. |
| Total | 48 / 100 | — |
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