Oral and genital pain syndromes in Parkinson's disease

Abstract

Painful sensory complaints are known to occur in Parkinson's disease, but painful oral or genital syndromes have not been described. We report seven individuals with presumed idiopathic Parkinson's disease and one with atypical parkinsonism who experienced chronic severe oral or genital pains that appeared to be examples of a primary sensory disturbance related to the underlying parkinsonism. In each case, the pain syndrome overshadowed the other features of the parkinsonism. Five patients experienced oral pain and three patients, all women, had genital pain. No other definable organic cause was detected to explain the symptoms in any case. The genital pain tended to fluctuate in severity with the motor manifestations of the parkinsonism and could be abolished or reduced by levodopa. The recognition of painful oral or genital sensations in patients with parkinsonism should lead to further study regarding the prevalence, neurochemical basis, and treatment for these disabling symptoms.