Metabolic Syndrome and Parkinson Disease: A New Take

Clinical Takeaway

: Should we be identifying and treating metabolic syndrome to reduce the risk for Parkinson disease?

Context

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) includes a constellation of symptoms, including obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia, and is a driver of cardiovascular and cognitive decline. However, its relationship to Parkinson disease (PD) remains unknown. To learn more, researchers used the community-based UK Biobank to study 467,000 adults without PD diagnoses at baseline (age range, 37–73); 38% had MetS.

Key Results

Over the 15-year follow-up, more than 3000 participants developed PD, of whom approximately half had MetS. The risk for PD was 39% higher in those with than without MetS.
Participants’ risks rose steadily with each additional metabolic abnormality identified (hazard ratio, 1.14), becoming significant for those with four or…

Reviewing Author

Michael Okun, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardParkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America

Speaker’s BureauMedscape/WebMD CME, Movement Disorders Society CME, American Academy of Neurology CME

RoyaltiesBooks4Patients; Demos; Cambridge; Taylor and Francis; Robert Rose; Public Affairs

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health; Parkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America; University of Florida Foundation

Editorial BoardsTremor and Other Hyperkinetic Movements; JAMA Neurology

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesParkinson’s Foundation (Medical Advisor)