Telehealth use among registered nurses: A national sample survey analysis.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is one of the most frequent age-related neurodegenerative disorders and is responsible for motor and non-motor symptoms. PD prevalence is approximately 1% above 60 years of age. Longer life expectancy as well as exposure to environmental factors likely contributed to increasing PD prevalence over the last decades. The estimated total economic burden of PD in the US was US$ 52 billion in 2017 and is projected to increase to US$ 79 billion in 2037. PD represents a substantial treatment challenge and burden for healthcare systems, patients, and their families, given that there is still no cure for PD. PD patients have ∼1.5–2.0 times higher mortality rates compared to persons without PD of similar age and sex, PD complications, including cognitive impairment and dementia, or gait disorders, are associated with higher mortality rates. A better understanding of PD patients' characteristics associated with higher mortality may help develop preventive strategies and help PD patients in seeking appropriate therapies or services at different stages of the disease course. Previous studies that examined PD mortality may have been limited by small sample sizes, study design (hospital-based, prevalent patients), short follow-up, or the absence of a control group. In addition, research on PD in Asian populations is scarce. This population-based cohort study used data from the National Health Insurance databases in Taiwan to compare mortality rates and causes of death in PD patients and persons without PD between 2003 and 2018.