Skip to main content

Severe Influenza Doubles Odds of Developing Parkinson's

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:
  1. 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
  2. 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

Popular posts from this blog

Charging Implanted Heart Pumps Wirelessly

Mechanical pumps to give failing hearts a boost were originally developed as temporary measures for patients awaiting a heart transplant. But as the technology has improved, these ventricular assist devices commonly operate in patients for years, including in former vice-president Dick Cheney, whose implant this month celebrates its one-year anniversary. Prolonged use, however, has its own problems. The power cord that protrudes through the patient's belly is cumbersome and prone to infection over time. Infections occur in close to 40 percent of patients, are the leading cause of rehospitalization, and can be fatal. Researchers at the University of Washington and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center have tested a wireless power system for ventricular assist devices. They recently presented the work in Washington, D.C. at the American Society for Artificial Internal Organs annual meeting, where it received the Willem Kolff/Donald B. Olsen Award for most promising research in

Autism and Eye Contact: Genes very much are involved

We have now a lot of evidence on genetic components in many disorders including neurological in both adults and kids. Autism is one such problem that has many genes involved. Research is still in full swing to find more genes and related pathways. However, one can find autistic features more phenotypically before genotyping. Eye contact is one of them. Studies have shown that autistic kids make less eye contact. This has been shown to have genetic component now. New research has uncovered compelling evidence that genetics plays a major role in how children look at the world and whether they have a preference for gazing at people's eyes and faces or at objects. The discovery by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta adds new detail to understanding the causes of autism spectrum disorder. The results show that the moment-to-moment movements of children's eyes as they seek visual information about the

How much people depend on weather reports

Meteorologists on television, radio, online, and in newspapers supply weather reports to the average person over 100 times a month. Surveys demonstrated that the 300 billion forecasts accessed generate a value of $285 per household every year, or $32 billion for the entire United States. Odds are you have already watched one weather forecast today and will probably check out a few more. Accurate, timely forecasts are vital to everyday life, but just how critical may surprise you. Whether at work or play, you probably watch the weather quite closely. Most of us are at the weather person's mercy to know what to wear, what to expect, to prepare for the worst. New research shows the average United States household checks out a weather report more than three times a day. "It impacts pretty much every part of every activity we are involved with for the most part," Jeff Lazo, the director of the Societal Impacts Program at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in B