Abstract
We investigated the effects of changes in outcome trends of patients with Parkinson disease (PD) before and after the induction of the long-term care insurance (LTCI) by the functional independence measure (FIM). Subjects consisted of 18 PD patients (11 male and 7 female; 65.2 ± 9.4 years old) hospitalized in the Hyogo Rehabilitation Central Hospital before the induction of the LTCI, and 25 PD patients (13 male and 12 female; 69.7 ± 6.5 years old) after the induction of the LTCI. After the induction of LTCI, the rate of home care rehabilitation decreased from 72% to 64%. The FIM total score at the time of discharge was significantly higher than that at the time of admission both before and after the induction of LTCI (p<0.001). Both the FIM total score at the time of admission and discharge were not influenced by the induction of LTCI. However, the average hospitalization period became significantly longer (p<0.05). These were considered to result from the induction of LTCI in the social rehabilitation for PD patients. A detailed examination on LCTI is needed to make more PD patients stay at home and return to social life.
