Cardiovascular history and risk of idiopathic Parkinson's disease: a cross-sectional observational study

Abstract

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD), while often associated with its distinctive motor symptoms, can also exert a notable impact on the cardiovascular system due to the development of severe autonomic dysfunction. One of the initial indicators of PD is the appearance of cardiovascular dysautonomia. As such, it is vital to monitor and manage cardiovascular health of individuals with PD, as it may have clinical implications in the development of commonly recognized motor and non-motor aspects of the disease. To study the association of history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) with occurrence and severity of PD, here, we lend data on the association of CVD history with the frequency and the occurrence of idiopathic PD (iPD) using data from the Luxembourg Parkinson's study (iPD n = 676 patients and non-PD n = 874 controls).

Results: We report that patients with a history of CVD are at high risk of developing iPD (odds ratio; OR = 1.56, 95% confidence interval; CI 1.09-2.08). This risk is stronger in males and remains significant after adjustment with confounders (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.05-2.30). This increased susceptibility to iPD is linked to the severity of iPD symptoms mainly the non-motor symptoms of daily living (MDS-UPDRS I) and motor complications (MDS-UPDRS IV) in the affected individuals.

Conclusion: Individuals with history of CVD have a high risk of developing severe forms of iPD. This observation suggests that careful monitoring and management of patients with a history of cardiac problems may reduce the burden of iPD.

Keywords: Cardiovascular health; Comorbidities; Parkinson’s disease; Sex-differences.

Fig. 1

Association of CVD history with the occurrence of iPD. A Univariate and B multivariate logistic regression to study the association between history of CVD and occurrence of iPD. Age, sex, BMI, hypertension, diabetes and smoking were included as confounders in the multivariate models

Fig. 2

Sex-specific association of CVD history with the occurrence of iPD. A Univariate and B multivariate logistic regression to study the association between history of CVD and occurrence of iPD in males. C Univariate and D multivariate logistic regression to study the association between history of CVD and occurrence of iPD in females. Age, BMI, hypertension, diabetes and smoking were included as confounders in the multivariate models

Fig. 3

Autonomic symptoms as assessed by the SCOPA-AUT score in (A) non-PD controls (n = 874) compared to iPD patients (n = 676), B participants who did not have history of CVD (n = 1337) compared to who had history of CVD (n = 213). C Sex specific association of SCOPA AUT with iPD D Sex specific association of SCOPA AUT with history of CVD. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann–Whitney Rank Sum test

Fig. 4

Association of CVD history with iPD severity. A Univariate and B multivariate logistic regression to study the association between history of CVD and disease severity scores in iPD patients. Age, sex, BMI, hypertension, diabetes, smoking and disease duration were included as confounders in the multivariate models

Fig. 5

Sex-specific association of CVD history with iPD severity. A Univariate and B multivariate logistic regression to study the association between history of CVD and disease severity scores in male iPD patients. C Univariate and D multivariate logistic regression model to study the association between history of CVD and disease severity scores in female iPD patients. Age, BMI, hypertension, diabetes, smoking and disease duration were included as confounders in the multivariate models