Does depression contribute to bladder and bowel complaints in Parkinson’s disease?

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a degenerative movement disorder affecting the basal ganglia, while dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is a disorder affecting both the basal ganglia and the cerebral cortex, being not rare in octogenarians (up to 8%). Non-motor features in PD/DLB, particularly autonomic including the bladder dysfunction, recently attract attention. Bladder dysfunction in PD/DLB reflects not only autonomic neural pathway but also emotional pathway. In this article, we reviewed bladder dysfunction in PD/DLB, bladder dysfunction in anxiety/ depression, and finally, bladder dysfunction in a combination of PD with depression. It is recommended to treat bladder dysfunction in PD/DLB with respect to the putative pathophysiology.