Report on brain health in Ontario includes insights into realities of Parkinson’s

Recently, the Ontario Brain Institute completed the Brain Health in Ontario project to collect and disseminate information about 13 brain disorders in Ontario, including Parkinson’s and related movement disorders. 

Key insights about Parkinsonisms in Ontario are reflected in the infographic above. The full report was created using data sets and analytic services available through ICES, a research organization unique to Ontario that collects population-based health and social data. In addition, representatives from Parkinson Canada’s research and advocacy teams consulted in the development of the report.  

“It is valuable to have concrete data on the realities of Parkinson’s including healthcare usage and financial burden”, says Maria Marano, Manager Research Information and Programs explains, “Detailed health information on Parkinson’s and related movement disorders is limited, and it is great to have research groups collecting evidence from Ontario that can inform our work nationally.”  

The full report can be found here as well as a focused page on Parkinsonisms in Ontario. 

Infographic transcript:

Brain Health Parkinsonisms: In 2019, there were 44.503 Ontarians living with Parkinsonism and 5877 new people identified that year.
Parkinsonism across age and sex: Young Adult (20-39): 1%, Adult (40-64): 18%, Senior Adult (64-74): 28%, Geriatric (75-84): 33%, Senior Geriatric (85+): 20%.
Male: 56%, Female: 44%.
Commonly co-occurring brain disorders: 62% of people with Parkinsonism have a co-occurring brain disorder. Dementia, stroke and brain injury have the highest co-occurrance with Parkinsonism.
Mental health and addiction visits: The number of mental health and addictions related: hospitalizations are 12x higher for people with Parkinsonism compared to the average Ontarian, emergency department visits are 6x higher for people with Parkinsonism compared to the average Ontarian, and outpatient visits are 3x higher for people with Parkinsonism compared to the average Ontarian.
Cost: Compared to the average Ontarian, the annual direct cost of the healthcare system is 8x more for people living with Parkinsonism and 8x more for new people identified with Parkinsonism.
The data in this infographic is from the Brain Health in Ontario Project. The data is produced by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and the Ontario Brain Institute. To learn more about the project visit www.braininstitute.ca/BrainHealth.