Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical NeurophysiologyNov 4, 2011

Sleep problems in Italian people with Parkinson's disease and the value of the Italian Parkinson’s sleep scale

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Updated Apr 2, 2026

Abstract

A total of 221 Parkinson's disease patients reported significantly lower sleep quality scores compared to 57 healthy controls.

Nighttime sleep disturbances are prevalent in patients with Parkinson's disease.
The Italian version of the Parkinson's Disease Sleep Scale (PDSS) is validated as a reliable tool for assessing sleep quality.
There is a significant negative correlation between PDSS total scores and daytime sleepiness.
PDSS scores also negatively correlate with depressive symptoms and overall disease severity.
No relationship was found between PDSS and levodopa equivalent dose.

Simplified

Sleep disturbances are common in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). We aimed to evaluate prevalence and severity of nighttime sleep disturbances in Italian PD patients and to validate the Italian version of the Parkinson's disease sleep scale. A total of 221 PD patients and 57 healthy controls participated in a cross-sectional study with retest. PDSS, Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), and Hoehn and Yahr staging were applied. PDSS total and individual items scores from patients were significantly lower than those in controls. Internal consistency of PDSS scale was satisfactory and intraclass correlation coefficient for test-retest reliability was 0.96 for total PDSS score. A significant negative correlation was found between total PDSS and ESS scores, and between total PDSS and HDRS scores. PDSS scores were also related to UPDRS sections II, III and IV, and H&Y stage. PDSS and ESS scores were not related to levodopa equivalent dose. Daytime sleepiness, depressive symptoms and disease severity correlate with sleep disturbances in Italian PD patients. The PDSS is a valid and reliable tool to evaluate sleep disturbances in Italian patients.

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Sleep problems in Italian people with Parkinson's disease and the value of the Italian Parkinson’s sleep scale

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