Parkinson’s Disease Psychosis: Hallucinations, Delusions & Paranoia

For more information on this topic, visit: https://www.parkinson.org/pd-library/...

As part of chronic Parkinson’s disease and its treatment, psychotic behaviors occur in over 50% of patients. These problems include illusions (perceptual errors), hallucinations (false perceptions), delusional thinking and even suspiciousness and paranoid behaviors.

Psychosis can be a frightening word that many people simply don’t understand. But what does it really mean? In Parkinson’s disease (PD), what your doctor calls psychosis usually starts with mild symptoms, but these can have a big impact on quality of life. Healthcare providers usually refer to these symptoms as "Parkinson's disease associated psychosis." Psychosis can vary from severe confusion (disordered thinking) to seeing things that aren’t there (hallucinations) to believing things that are not true (delusions).

It is important to report any hallucinations or delusions to your medical team, even if they are not bothersome.

Presenter: Christopher G. Goetz, MD
Professor of Neurological Sciences, Professor of Pharmacology
Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA