Researchers have found a strong link between depression and the development of Parkinson’s disease, it was revealed last night.
The findings may mean that depression can be an early symptom of the problem – rather than that succumbing to mental illness makes people vulnerable to Parkinson’s.
Researchers in Taiwan found that people with depression had three times the risk of others of developing Parkinson’s disease.
The findings, reported in Neurology, come from a comparison of some 4,600 people with depression and another 18,000 free of the problem over a ten year period. Some 150 of these developed Parkinson’s disease during the decade.
The researchers say there was also a strong link to age and to depression being hard to treat.
Researcher Dr Albert Yang, of Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, said the study suggested depression was an "independent risk factor" for Parkinson’s disease.
He added: “Many questions remain, including whether depression is an early symptom of Parkinson’s disease rather than an independent risk factor for the disease."
Neurology 2 October 2013
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