The management of a chronic disease must integrate the needs induced by the disease on the patient's surroundings. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the COMPAS study is to assess the socio-economic consequences on the daily life of the spouse of a patient diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and to identify their worries and needs. METHODS: Self-administered questionnaires, created on the basis of interviews with the spouses of parkinson patients, were sent to general practitioners, neurologists as well as to members of patients' associations (France-parkinson), who then distributed them to the families concerned. RESULTS: The results concerned a population of 1013 spouses. Patients had been diagnosed since 10.4 years on average at the age of 58.8 years old. The spouse is often a woman (66 %), retired (68 %) and more than 70 years old (40 %).She is the only person looking after the patient (49 %). She spends on average 7.5 hours per day in taking care of the patient. This high level of involvement greatly modifies her daily life : specific organisation due to treatment constraints (27%) and giving up leasure and social activities (22%). As a consequence, her psychology is altered with anxiety and anguish (45%)and fear of be unable to cope (42%) and so medical and/or psychological help is often needed by the spouse (42%). CONCLUSION: COMPAS underlines the spouse's needs for information concerning: the disease and its evolution, the current and future treament, but also a concrete daily help adapted to the level of the dependance of the patient.