Objective: Our study aimed at determining the frequency and risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in Parkinsonian patients in the Luxembourg Parkinson’s Study (LuxPARK).

Background: The cross talk between the brain and heart in disease states has been discussed for several years (1). Recent work has shown that Parkinson’s disease (PD) sufferers have elevated risk of developing CVDs due to shared pathogenesis and risk factors (2). However, the functional link between both conditions is understudied.

Method: LuxPARK is a longitudinal-monocentric study comprising more than 1700 participants to date, recruited in Luxembourg and surrounding border regions. The participants were divided into two groups: Parkinsonism (PS; N=912) and Non-PD controls (N=826). The frequency and risk of CVDs was studied in PS patients vs the non-PD controls. Further, to study the risk of CVD in different forms of PS, the PS group was sub-divided into different PS types (‘idiopathic PD’ (n=665), ‘PD and Dementia’ (n=87), ‘Progressive supranuclear palsy’ (PSP, n=55), ‘Lewy Body Dementia’ (n=32), ‘Parkinsonism’ (n=19), ‘Secondary Parkinsonism’ (n=18), ‘Multiple system atrophy’ (n=15), ‘Cortico-Basal Syndrome’ (n=13), ‘Drug-induced PD’ (n=7) and ‘Frontotemporal dementia and parkinsonism (FTDP, n=1).

Results: LuxPARK study representing the Luxembourgish PS population revealed higher prevalence of PS in males (PS – 66.2%, Non-PD -51.7%; p<0.001) as compared to females. The frequency of CVD occurrence was significantly higher in PS (51%) as compared to non-PD (33%) controls (p<0.001). The risk of developing CVD was also higher in the PS group (odds ratio; OR =1.983, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.635 – 2.405, p-value <0.001) which remained similar after adjusting for age and sex (OR = 1.252, 95% CI = 1.009 – 1.554, p = 0.041). In different PS types, the age and sex adjusted risk of CVD was significantly elevated for PS patient groups only with secondary parkinsonism (OR=3.608, 95% CI = 1,113 – 11,691; p-value = 0.032).

Conclusion: Our study sheds a light on the significance of brain and heart associations in the context of PS and CVDs. Our results show that men are at greater risk of developing PS than women. Additionally, PS patients in Luxembourg have a higher risk of developing CVDs compared to the non-PD controls. This study strengthens the link between various forms of PS and CVD occurrence and the dire need to study the two diseases in coherence.

References: 1. Vicario A, Cerezo GH. At the Heart of Brain Disorders – Preventing Cognitive Decline and Dementia. Eur Cardiol. 2015 Jul;10(1):60-63. doi: 10.15420/ecr.2015.10.01.60. PMID: 30310425; PMCID: PMC6159433.
2. Hong CT, Hu HH, Chan L, Bai CH. Prevalent cerebrovascular and cardiovascular disease in people with Parkinson’s disease: a meta-analysis. Clin Epidemiol. 2018 Sep 4;10:1147-1154. doi: 10.2147/CLEP.S163493. PMID: 30233249; PMCID: PMC6130276.

« Back to 2023 International Congress

MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/cardiovascular-complications-in-parkinsonism-insights-from-luxembourg-parkinsons-study/