OBJECTIVES: To review disease- and condition-specific QoL instruments and their psychometric properties in Parkinson’s disease (PD), treatment options, and caregiver burden (CB).  METHODS: A systematic literature search was conducted among peer-reviewed journals from January 2008 to December 2012 on quality of life (QoL) of PD patients or patients undergoing drug therapy in electronic databases such as Pubmed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and Cochrane.  A full review was conducted on articles that met the inclusion criteria. The search was limited to English language, full text availability, humans, and within five years; however, no time-frame was stipulated for CB.  Meta-analyses, systematic reviews, or studies conducted exclusively outside the United States were excluded.  For studies assessing CB, instruments not validated in PD population were excluded.  RESULTS: The review identified seven disease-specific and two generic instruments assessing QoL in PD, 13 instruments recommended by the Movement Disorder Society in assessing QoL in patients undergoing drug therapy, and 12 instruments that assessed CB. A description of the domains, scaling, and psychometric properties of the instruments were included.  Instruments ranged from comprehensive scales assessing all aspects of PD to recently developed instruments designed to assess a specific component of PD such as “wearing off” periods or freezing of gait.  In PD patients undergoing drug therapy, four studies were identified that assessed patients in early PD and two studies focused on levodopa-induced motor fluctuations.  Common domains assessed by the CB instruments were clinical, socio-demographic, emotional, and functional factors.  Overall, Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale and Zarit Caregiver Burden Inventory were the most widely used instruments.  CONCLUSIONS:  Multiple factors contribute to the QoL in PD patients and their caregivers including disease severity, unpredictable disease progression, and adverse effects of treatment.  This review highlights the instruments and their properties in PD and serves as a useful resource for researchers and clinicians.