People with Parkinson's have lower rate of heart attack and stroke

Most of us strive to lower our LDL (low-density lipoprotein)
cholesterol – that's the bad stuff for good cardiovascular health.
But, a new study by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
researchers has found that people with low levels of LDL cholesterol
are more likely to have Parkinson's disease than people with high
LDL levels. This disorder that affects nerve cells in the part of
the brain controlling muscle movement is most common in senior
citizens. Earlier studies have found intriguing correlations between
Parkinson's disease, heart attacks, stroke and smoking.
"People with Parkinson's disease have a lower occurrence of heart
attack and stroke than people who do not have the disease," said Dr.
Xuemei Huang, medical director of the Movement Disorder Clinic at
UNC Hospitals and an assistant professor of neurology in the UNC
School of Medicine.

"Parkinson's patients are also more likely to carry the gene APOE-2,
which is linked with lower LDL cholesterol."

And for more than a decade, researchers have known that smoking,
which increases a person's risk for cardiovascular disease, is also
associated with a decreased risk of Parkinson's disease.

These findings led Huang to examine whether higher LDL cholesterol
might be associated with a decreased occurrence for Parkinson's
disease, and vice versa.

"If my hypothesis was correct," she said, "lower LDL-C, something
that is linked to healthy hearts, would be associated with a higher
occurrence of Parkinson's."

About Parkinson's Parkinson's disease is a disorder that affects
nerve cells in the part of the brain controlling muscle movement.
People with Parkinson's disease often experience trembling, muscle
rigidity, difficulty walking, problems with balance and slowed
movements. These symptoms usually develop after age 60, although
some people affected by Parkinson's disease are younger than age 50.

Parkinson's disease is progressive, meaning the signs and symptoms
become worse over time. But although Parkinson's disease may
eventually be disabling, the disease often progresses gradually, and
most people have many years of productive living after a diagnosis.

Furthermore, unlike other serious neurological diseases, Parkinson's
disease is treatable. One treatment approach is medications. Another
involves an implanted device that stimulates the brain. Other
approaches involve surgery.

The results of Huang's study, published online Dec. 18 by the
journal Movement Disorders, confirmed her hypothesis. "We found that
lower LDL concentrations were indeed associated with a higher
occurrence of Parkinson's disease," Huang said.

Participants with lower LDL levels (less than 114 milligrams per
deciliter) had a 3.5-fold higher occurrence of Parkinson's than the
participants with higher LDL levels (more than 138 milligrams per
deciliter).

Huang cautioned that people should not change their eating habits,
nor their use of statins and other cholesterol-lowering drugs,
because of the results. The study was based on relatively small
numbers of cases and controls, and the results are too preliminary,
she said. Further large prospective studies are needed, Huang added.

"Parkinson's is a disease full of paradoxes," Huang said. "We've
known for years that smoking reduces the risk of developing
Parkinson's. More than 40 studies have documented that fact. But we
don't advise people to smoke because of the other more serious
health risks," she said.

Huang and her colleagues recruited 124 Parkinson's patients who were
treated at the UNC Movement Disorder Clinic between July 2002 and
November 2004 to take part in the study. Another 112 people, all
spouses of patients treated in the clinic, were recruited as the
control group. Fasting cholesterol profiles were obtained from each
participant.

The researchers also recorded information on each participant's
gender, age, smoking habits and use of cholesterol-lowering drugs.

Huang notes that the study also found participants with Parkinson's
were much less likely to take cholesterol-lowering drugs than
participants in the control group. This, combined with the findings
about LDL cholesterol, suggests two questions for additional study,
Huang said.

"One is whether lower cholesterol predates the onset of Parkinson's.
Number two, what is the role of statins in that? In other words,
does taking cholesterol-lowering drugs somehow protect against
Parkinson's? We need to address these questions," she said.

12/20/06(SeniorJournal.com) -