Among the study participants, 331 patients diagnosed with an anxiety disorder developed Parkinson’s disease over a 10-year period, on average 4.9 years after they were first diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, the researchers found.
People with anxiety were twice as likely to develop Parkinson’s disease as those without a diagnosed anxiety disorder, even after controlling for age, lifestyle, mental illness and other factors. Those who developed Parkinson’s were also more likely to be men and from higher socioeconomic groups.
Other factors also contributed to the development of Parkinson’s. The researchers found that people with depression, sleep disorders, fatigue, cognitive impairment, low blood pressure, tremors, stiffness, balance problems, and constipation were more likely to develop Parkinson’s. People with dizziness, shoulder pain, and problems with urination or erection were less likely to develop Parkinson’s.
“Anxiety has been less studied than other early symptoms of Parkinson’s disease,” Annette Schrag, professor of clinical neuroscience at the Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, University of London, and co-leader of the study, said in the news. releaseShe said further research should focus on anxiety to find better treatments for the early stages of Parkinson’s disease.
according to Parkinson’s is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in the United States, affecting up to one million Americans, but the number of cases varies and is often misdiagnosed, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Parkinson’s is most commonly diagnosed in people over the age of 60, but up to 10 percent of people are diagnosed before age 50 and may never notice early symptoms, according to the institute.
