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CC BY 4.0 · Arq Neuropsiquiatr 2026; 84(01): s00451814375
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1814375
Original Article

Demographics, treatment patterns, and healthcare resource utilization in Parkinson's disease: a real-world data study using a claims database

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Abstract

Background

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder associated with substantial disability, morbidity, and mortality. Timely diagnosis and treatment are essential to mitigate its impact. Despite its burden, real-world data on PD in Brazil remain limited.

Objective

To describe the demographic and clinical profile of individuals with PD treated in the Brazilian public healthcare system and to evaluate patterns of treatment and healthcare resource utilization (HCRU).

Methods

The present observational, retrospective, longitudinal study analyzed data from the Brazilian public healthcare system (Sistema Único de Saúde, SUS, in Portuguese) between January 2013 and December 2022. Patients aged ≥ 20 years with at least 2 core procedures coded for PD (ICD-10 G20) were included. Inpatient and outpatient datasets were analyzed separately.

Results

A total of 53,674 PD patients were identified. The mean age at diagnosis was 65.4 years, with a slight male predominance (53.0%). Most patients (47.0%) had more than 6 outpatient visits, and 44.4% had 1 or 2 hospitalizations. The most frequent procedures were PD treatment (inpatient) and physical therapy (outpatient). The most used medications were pramipexole (45.6%), amantadine (26.0%), and entacapone (17.1%).

Conclusion

The present study provides valuable insights into the demographic and clinical profile of PD patients in Brazil, highlighting frequent procedures and treatment patterns. A key limitation is the non-capture of basic PD medications, such as levodopa, which are often dispensed outside the analyzed datasets. These findings underscore the need for improved data integration and access to comprehensive PD care within the public health system.

Keywords

Parkinson Disease - Unified Health System - Health Resources - Therapeutics

Authors' Contributions

Conceptualizável: ABC, LRA, ABMA, ACS; investigation; ABC, LRA, ABMA, ACS; Methodology: ABC, LRA, ABMA,ACS; Project administration: ABC, LRA, ABMA, ACS; Resources: ABC, LRA, ABMA, ACS; Supervision: ABC, LRA, ABMA, ACS; Validation: ABC, LRA, ABMA, ACS; Writing - original draft: ABC, LRA, MAMF, ABMA, ACS, JBP;Writing - review & editing: ABC, LRA, MAMF, ABMA, ACS, JBP.


Data Availability Statement

The datasets used in this study are publicly available from the Computer ScienceDepartment of the Brazilian Unified Health System (DATASUS [Departamento de Informática do Suistema Único de Saúde]) database, maintained by Brazil's Ministry of Health. The data can be accessed through the official DATASUS website or file transfer protocol (FTP) server. For more information or to request access, please visit the DATASUS website or contact their support team.


Editor-in-Chief: Hélio A. G. Teive. (ORCID: 0000-0003-2305-1073).


Associate Editor: José Luiz Pedroso. (ORCID: 0000-0002-1672-8894).




Publikationsverlauf

Eingereicht: 06. Februar 2025

Angenommen: 08. Oktober 2025

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
25. Januar 2026

© 2026. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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Bibliographical Record
Alexandre Battaglini Chehin, Luciana Rahal Abrahão, Marcos Augusto Mira Fuga, Ana Beatriz Machado de Almeida, Angelica Carreira dos Santos, Jacy Bezerra Parmera. Demographics, treatment patterns, and healthcare resource utilization in Parkinson's disease: a real-world data study using a claims database. Arq Neuropsiquiatr 2026; 84: s00451814375.
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1814375