The research concludes that depression, sleep disturbance, fatigue, cognitive impairment, hypotension, tremors, balance disturbance, rigidity and constipation are risk factors for the development of Parkinson’s disease
The risk of developing the disease Parkinson’s is at least twice as likely in people over 50 who have recently developed anxiety compared to those without anxiety, according to a study by University College London (UCL) researchers.
Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative condition worldwide and is estimated to affect 14.2 million people by 2040. Anxiety is a feature of the early stages of the disease.
The study, published in the British Journal of General Practice, investigated whether there was a link between people over the age of 50 who had recently developed anxiety and a later diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease.
The team used UK primary care data for the period 2008-2018. It evaluated 109,435 patients who had developed anxiety after the age of 50 and compared them with 878,256 matched participants who did not have anxiety. The researchers then tracked the presence of Parkinson’s features, such as sleep problems, depression, and impaired balance, from the time of the anxiety diagnosis up to a year before the date of Parkinson’s diagnosis.
After adjusting the results to take into account factors that may affect the likelihood of developing the condition, the researchers found that the risk of developing Parkinson’s was doubled in those with anxiety compared to the control group.
They also confirmed that symptoms such as depression, sleep disturbance, fatigue, cognitive impairment, hypotension, tremors, balance disturbance, rigidity and constipation were risk factors for the development of Parkinson’s disease in people with anxiety. .
“Understanding that stress and the above-mentioned characteristics are associated with a higher risk of developing Parkinson’s disease over the age of 50, we hope that we will be able to detect the condition earlier and help patients get the treatment they need,” points out the co-lead study author Juan Bazo Avarez from UCL.
The researchers point out that future research should examine why people over the age of 50 with new-onset anxiety are at greater risk of developing Parkinson’s disease and whether disease outcome is affected by the severity of anxiety.
Source :Skai
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