Severe influenza doubles the odds that a person will develop Parkinson's
disease later in life, according to University of British Columbia
researchers.
However, the opposite is true for people who contracted a typical
case of red measles as children -- they are 35 per cent less likely to
develop Parkinson's, a nervous system disorder marked by slowness of
movement, shaking, stiffness, and in the later stages, loss of balance.
The findings by researchers at UBC's School of Population and Public
Health and the Pacific Parkinson's Research Centre, published online
this month in the journal Movement Disorders, are based on interviews with 403 Parkinson's patients and 405 healthy people in British Columbia, Canada.
Lead author Anne Harris also examined whether occupational exposure
to vibrations -- such as operating construction equipment -- had any
effect on the risk of Parkinson's. In another study, published online
this month by the American Journal of Epidemiology, she and her
collaborators reported that occupational exposure actually decreased
the risk of developing the disease by 33 percent, compared to people
whose jobs involved no exposure.
Meanwhile, Harris found that those exposed to high-intensity
vibrations -- for example, by driving snowmobiles, military tanks or
high-speed boats -- had a consistently higher risk of developing
Parkinson's than people whose jobs involved lower-intensity vibrations
(for example, operating road vehicles). The elevated risk fell short of
the statistical significance typically used to establish a correlation,
but was strong and consistent enough to suggest an avenue for further
study, Harris says.
"There are no cures or prevention programs for Parkinson's, in part
because we still don't understand what triggers it in some people and
not others," says Harris, who conducted the research while earning her
doctorate at UBC. "This kind of painstaking epidemiological detective
work is crucial in identifying the mechanisms that might be at work,
allowing the development of effective prevention strategies."
Background information
Parkinson's disease results when brain cells that make the
neurotransmitter dopamine are destroyed, preventing the brain from
transmitting messages to muscles. The disease typically strikes people
over age 50. Although some cases are genetic in origin, the cause for
most cases of the disease is still unknown; possible explanations
include repeated head trauma, or exposure to viruses or chemical
compounds.
Treatment: There is no cure for Parkinson's, only medications to treat the symptoms.
Journal References:
- M. Anne Harris, Joseph K. Tsui, Stephen A. Marion, Hui Shen, Kay Teschke. Association of Parkinson's disease with infections and occupational exposure to possible vectors. Movement Disorders, 2012; DOI: 10.1002/mds.25077
- M. A. Harris, S. A. Marion, J. J. Spinelli, J. K. C. Tsui, K. Teschke. Occupational Exposure to Whole-Body Vibration and Parkinson's Disease: Results From a Population-based Case-Control Study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 2012; DOI: 10.1093/aje/kws017