Parkinson's Disease and Digestive Health

The measurements to be obtained are gastric emptying time (GET), small bowel transit time (SBTT), colonic transit time (CTT) and whole gut transit time (WGTT) over a period of 5 days. Tool to be used includes wireless motility capsule and corresponding recorder swallowed on initial visit and returned 5 days later. Specific measurements obtained include time in hours of GET, SBTT, CTT, WGTT. These outcome will only be measured once per subject and not be reassessed.

Rectal sustained squeeze pressure (mmHg) measure from Anal rectal manometry study

Anal sustained squeeze pressure (mmHg) measure from Anal rectal manometry study

Used to follow the longitudinal course of Parkinson's disease. The UPDRS scale consists of the following five segments: 1) Mentation, Behavior, and Mood, 2) ADL, 3) Motor sections, 4) Modified Hoehn and Yahr Scale, and 5) Schwab and England ADL scale. Some sections of the UPDRS scale require multiple grades assigned to each extremity with a possible maximum of 199 points. A score of 199 on the UPDRS scale represents the worst (total disability) with a score of zero representing (no disability).

Screening assessment for detecting cognitive impairment. MoCA scores range between 0 and 30. A final total score of 26 and above is considered normal.

A 30-item screening patient-based questionnaire used to determine the non-motor symptoms experienced by the patient. The points should be totalled to give a score out of 30. A score of under 10 is mild, 10-20 moderate and over 20, severe.

SF-36 is a set of generic, coherent, and easily administered quality-of-life measures. The SF-36 consists of eight scaled scores, which are the weighted sums of the questions in their section. Each scale is directly transformed into a 0-100 scale on the assumption that each question carries equal weight. The lower the score the more disability. The higher the score the less disability i.e., a score of zero is equivalent to maximum disability and a score of 100 is equivalent to no disability.

The measurement to be obtained is bowel pattern. Tool to be used include 2-week stool diary. Specific measurements obtained include number of complete spontaneous bowel movements (CSBMs) a week. These outcome will only be measured once per subject and not be reassessed.

The GCSI is based on three subscales: post-prandial fullness/early satiety (4 items); nausea/vomiting (3 items), and bloating (2 items). A six-point Likert response scale, ranging from 0 (none) to 5 (very severe), with a 2-week recall period, was used to rate the severity of each symptom. The GCSI total score was constructed as the average of the three symptom sub-scales. GCSI total scores were in the range 0-5, with higher scores reflecting greater symptom severity.

The ESS is a 4 item self-report scale measuring weight loss in kilograms, chest pain, regurgitation, and dysphagia. Each item is graded on a score of 0 to 3, with a maximum score of 12. Scores greater than or equal to 3 are considered suggestive of active achalasia. The ESS is widely used in both clinical and research settings as a gold standard for measuring achalasia symptom severity.

The measurement to be obtained is presence of bacterial overgrowth. Tool to be used include breath testing via gas chromatography. Specific measurements obtained hydrogen and methane in parts per million (ppm) at baseline and every 30 minutes for 2-3 hours. These outcome will only be measured once per subject and not be reassessed.