Parkinson's disease (PD) is a frequent neurologic disorder among elderly individuals. Whereas the hallmark of the disease is the presence of abnormal movements, comorbid psychiatric and cognitive abnormalities are frequently found. The major aim for the present book was to include up-to-date information regarding the diagnosis, phenomenology, and treatment of the psychiatric and cognitive disorders of PD in one single volume.

Most patients with PD are usually cared for by internists and general practitioners, but the information about emotional and cognitive comorbid conditions is usually found in specialized neurologic and psychiatric journals. Our book is aimed at senior clinicians and trainees in internal medicine and general practice, at neurologists who may want a better understanding of their patients' “non-motor” problems, and at geriatric psychiatrists who may want to access the relevant information about emotion and cognition in PD, and update their knowledge about the motor complications and treatment of this disorder.

The second chapter provides a strong clinical background of the motor problems of PD before discussing the psychiatric and cognitive disorders related to the illness. We address the epidemiology and main clinical aspects of PD, and a clinical case is presented to illustrate the progression along the stages of the illness. There is also specific discussion of the different clinical complications that may emerge during the evolution of the disease and the subtypes of the illness.