Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with Parkinson's disease from a 5% Medicare sample, 2007–2010
| Characteristic | Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | |
| Sample size, no. | 9482 | 9626 | 9566 | 9503 |
| Demographics | ||||
| Age, % | ||||
| <65 y | 5.3 | 5.0 | 5.4 | 5.9 |
| 65–69 y | 7.8 | 7.7 | 7.8 | 8.3 |
| 70–74 y | 13.9 | 14.5 | 14.6 | 13.9 |
| 75–79 y | 19.8 | 19.5 | 19.3 | 20.1 |
| 80–84 y | 24.5 | 24.8 | 23.7 | 23.2 |
| >85 y | 28.7 | 28.5 | 29.1 | 28.7 |
| Sex: Men, % | 39.0 | 39.5 | 40.3 | 41.6 |
| Race, % | ||||
| White | 88.1 | 88.1 | 87.7 | 87.2 |
| African‐American | 5.6 | 5.3 | 5.4 | 5.8 |
| Hispanic | 2.7 | 2.6 | 2.9 | 2.8 |
| Other | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.2 |
| Low‐income subsidy (LIS), % | ||||
| Full | 45.6 | 44.2 | 43.8 | 43.5 |
| Partial | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.9 |
| Non‐LIS | 50.4 | 52.1 | 52.4 | 52.9 |
| County‐level socioeconomic status measures | ||||
| Education: less than high school, % | 14.3 | 13.9 | 13.9 | 13.9 |
| Median income, US$ | 34,921 | 36,665 | 36,574 | 37,352 |
| Unemployment, % | 4.8 | 5.9 | 9.4 | 9.7 |
| County‐level measure of access to neurologists | ||||
| No. of neurologists in county per 100,000 population | 69.8 | 70.0 | 69.6 | 71.9 |
| PD‐related comorbidity, % | ||||
| Anxiety | 16.7 | 18.6 | 19.8 | 20.0 |
| Depression | 30.5 | 32.4 | 32.4 | 32.9 |
| Psychosis or hallucinations | 18.9 | 19.0 | 19.4 | 19.0 |
| Dementia | 11.2 | 12.2 | 12.9 | 13.2 |
| Falls | 5.8 | 6.0 | 9.8 | 10.9 |
| Fractures | 9.3 | 8.5 | 8.4 | 7.7 |
| Deep brain stimulation | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.8 | 2.0 |
| Leg edema | 18.8 | 19.2 | 19.8 | 20.7 |
| Orthostatic hypotension | 11.7 | 12.1 | 12.0 | 12.9 |
| Syncope | 12.1 | 12.6 | 12.2 | 12.5 |
| Other comorbidities | ||||
| RxHcc, mean | 1.19 | 1.22 | 1.22 | 1.24 |
| Measure of specialty care | ||||
| Sees neurologist, % | 58.8 | 60.3 | 60.5 | 61.7 |
PD, Parkinson's disease; RxHcc, prescription drug hierarchical condition category.