The association between freezing of gait, fear of falling and anxiety in Parkinson's disease: a longitudinal analysis

Aim: We studied the longitudinal associations between freezing of gait (FoG), fear of falling (FoF) and anxiety, and how these associations are influenced by confounding factors. Materials & methods: We analyzed longitudinal motor and nonmotor measurements from 153 Parkinson's disease patients. Possible confounding factors were divided into three subgroups: demographics, disease characteristics, medication use and adverse effects of medication. Results: All crude associations between FoG, FoF and anxiety were significant and remained so after adjusting for confounders. When analyzing FoF and anxiety together as independent variables, the association between FoG and FoF remained, and the association between FoG and anxiety diminished. Conclusion: We confirm the complex interactions between motor and nonmotor symptoms in Parkinson's disease, and plead for a multidisciplinary approach.