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By Meghan Yost, Ivanhoe Health Correspondent
ORLANDO, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A new study uncovers more of the link between Parkinsons disease and cholesterol.
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Two years ago, researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill found people with low levels of LDL -- bad cholesterol -- are more likely to have Parkinsons disease than people with high LDL levels; but it was not determined whether or not the patients had low levels before being diagnosed. Now, a follow-up study reveals low levels were present in a group of Japanese men long before being diagnosed with the neurological disorder.
The study represented data collected from a group of 3,233 Japanese men, from 1991 to 1993 -- a time when statin medication to lower cholesterol was not widely available. Over about a 10-year observation period, researchers found the incidence of Parkinsons disease increased as LDL levels decreased. Researchers say the men with lower LDL levels (85 milligrams per deciliter) were two times more likely than those with higher LDL levels (135 milligrams per deciliter) to be diagnosed with Parkinsons.
Researchers say there is still more work to be done on the Parkinsons - cholesterol link. We dont know if Parkinsons causes lower cholesterol or if lower cholesterol somehow increases the susceptibility to Parkinsons disease, lead author Xuemei Huang, M.D., Ph.D., medical director of the Movement Disorder Clinic at UNC Hospitals and an assistant professor of neurology in the UNC School of Medicine, told Ivanhoe. Dr. Huang says she plans to continue her research. We are looking at the role of statins in Parkinsons disease is. We are looking at other cohorts to see if the same findings will replicate in women or African Americans.
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SOURCE: Ivanhoe interview with Xuemei Huang, M.D., Ph.D.; Movement Disorders, published online March 31, 2008
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
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