summary: A new study suggests that the risk of developing dementia in people with Parkinson’s disease may be lower or occur later than previously reported. Researchers analyzed data from two large studies and found that newly diagnosed patients had a 9% risk of developing dementia within 10 years, while those diagnosed for an average of six years had a 27% risk. Factors that increase the risk of dementia include older age at diagnosis, being male, and lower education level.
Key Facts:
- The risk of developing dementia 10 years after a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis is 9% (newly diagnosed patients).
- The risk of developing dementia 10 years after a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis is 27% (the average time patients have been diagnosed is 6 years).
- Older age at diagnosis, male gender, and lower education level are associated with a higher risk of dementia.
sauce: A.A.N.
There’s good news for people with Parkinson’s disease: A study published online August 7, 2024 suggests that the risk of developing dementia may be lower than previously thought, or that dementia may develop later in the disease’s progression than previously reported. Neurology.
“Patients with Parkinson’s disease fear developing dementia, and the combination of movement and cognitive impairment can be devastating for patients and their families,” said study author Daniel Weintraub, MD, PhD, of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
“These results provide a more optimistic estimate of the long-term risk of dementia in people with Parkinson’s disease and suggest a longer window for interventions to prevent or slow cognitive decline.”
Previous studies have suggested that around 80 percent of Parkinson’s patients will develop dementia within 15 to 20 years of being diagnosed with the disease.
“Although these studies were important in highlighting the issue of cognitive decline in Parkinson’s disease, we wanted to reevaluate these findings because the studies were conducted many years ago, were relatively small, and had other limitations,” Weintraub said.
For the study, the researchers analyzed data from two large prospective studies: The international study included 417 participants with a mean age of 62 who were newly diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and not yet receiving treatment at study enrollment.
The University of Pennsylvania study looked at 389 people with Parkinson’s disease, with an average age of 69, who had been diagnosed with the disease an average of six years before the study began. Participants were followed to see if they developed dementia.
An international study estimated that people had a 9% chance of being diagnosed with dementia 10 years after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. A Pennsylvania study estimated that people had a 27% chance of being diagnosed with dementia 10 years after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. In the latter study, researchers estimated that people had a 50% risk of developing dementia 15 years after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and 74% risk after 20 years.
In the Pennsylvania study, factors that increased the risk of dementia included being older at the time of Parkinson’s disease diagnosis, being male, and having a lower level of education.
A limitation of both studies is that participants were primarily White and highly educated and were recruited to participate in research surveys and therefore may not be representative of the general population.
Funding: The international study, the Parkinson’s Disease Progression Markers Initiative, is a public-private partnership funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research and multiple funding partners. The University of Pennsylvania research was supported by the National Institute on Aging.
About this Parkinson’s research news
author: Renee Tesman
sauce: A.A.N.
contact: Renee Tesman – AAN
image: Image courtesy of Neuroscience News
Original Research: The survey results are Neurology
