People present a broad range of symptoms up to a decade before Parkinson’s disease is diagnosed, with tremor and memory symptoms being the most prominent, according to a new analysis.
The study set out to discover early markers of Parkinson’s disease that are applicable to the whole population.
Writing in JAMA Neurology, Dr Cristina Simonet, of Queen Mary University of London, UK, and colleagues point out that previous work may have overrepresented White, affluent groups.
They analysed an ethnically diverse group of 1,016,277 individuals’ electronic health care records from primary care practices in East London, a "UK population with high socioeconomic deprivation but universal access to health care".
There were 1,055 patients with Parkinson’s disease among the group, and they tended to be older and more likely to be male.
Significant links were seen with tremor and memory symptoms measured less than two years before the Parkinson’s disease diagnosis. Links were also found up to ten years before diagnosis for tremor and five years in advance for memory symptoms.
A subsequent diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease was also linked to hypertension and type 2 diabetes. Further links were seen to hypotension, constipation, depression, epilepsy and hearing loss.
These associations were checked against information in the UK Biobank and appeared to be confirmed.
"This study provides data suggesting that a range of comorbidities and symptoms are encountered in primary care settings before Parkinson’s disease diagnosis," say the authors.
They add that the links to epilepsy and hearing loss have not been observed before.
Co-author Dr Alastair Noyce stated: “If we’re able to diagnose Parkinson’s earlier, we have a real opportunity to intervene early and offer treatments that could improve quality of life for patients."
Simonet, C. et al. Risk factors and early presentations of Parkinson’s disease in Primary Care in a diverse UK population. JAMA Neurology 7 March 2022 doi: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.0003
Leave a Reply