Parkinson's disease Braak staging is generally divided into five stages:

Stage 1 refers to unilateral symptoms only, such as tremors or stiffness in one hand or one foot, with symptoms confined to one side of the body and not crossing the midline.

Stage 2 refers to mild symptoms on both sides, such as tremors in both hands or throughout the body, but without impairment of balance.

Stage 3 refers to more pronounced bilateral symptoms, such as difficulty lifting legs, taking small shuffling steps, leaning forward, or instability when holding a bowl while eating, but capable of living normally.

Stage 4 refers to the loss of most of the ability for autonomous activity.

Stage 5 refers to a complete loss of the ability to live independently.