Low body mass index and life prognosis in Parkinson's disease. (October 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Park, Kwiyoung; Oeda, Tomoko; Kohsaka, Masayuki; Tomita, Satoshi; Umemura, Atsushi; Sawada, Hideyuki
• Is Part Of: Parkinsonism & related disorders. Volume 55(2018)
• Page Start: 81
• Page End: 85
• Publication Date: 2018-10
• Subjects: Body mass index -- Life prognosis -- Survival -- Parkinson's disease; Parkinson's disease -- Periodicals; Movement disorders -- Periodicals; Movement Disorders -- Periodicals; Nerve Degeneration -- Periodicals; Nervous System Diseases -- Periodicals; Parkinson Disease -- Periodicals; Tremor -- Periodicals; Parkinson, Maladie de -- Périodiques; Parkinson's disease; 616.833
• DOI: 10.1016/j.parkreldis.2018.05.011
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1353-8020

Abstract

Abstract: Introduction: Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) frequently lose weight, even in the early stages of the disease. Our objective was to clarify the association between low body mass index (BMI) and life prognosis in PD. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 651 PD patients (380 females), with a primary endpoint of survival. Because of sex differences in BMI, male and female data were separated. We compared survival times between underweight (BMI < 18.5) and non-underweight (BMI ≥ 18.5) patients and calculated hazard ratios (HRs) adjusted for other relevant factors. To investigate the semi-quantitative relationship between relative risk of death and BMI, we divided patients into lower, middle, and upper thirds of BMI and calculated the HRs of the lower and upper thirds, with reference to the middle third. Results: Seventy-nine patients (41 females) died over a mean (standard deviation) observation period of 39 (26) months. Underweight patients had poorer life prognosis than non-underweight patients and the difference was larger in males than in females (adjusted HR 3.8 (95% confidence interval 1.9–7.9) in males and 1.8 (0.9–3.5) in females). In males, the relationship between survival and BMI was much poorer in the bottom third and slightly poorer in the top third compared with the middle third. In females, the higher the BMI, the better the survival prognosis; however, the difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion: Low BMI had a significant impact on the life prognosis of PD patients, especially males. Highlights: Patients with Parkinson's disease often lose weight during the course of the disease. The association between BMI and life prognosis in PD was studied retrospectively. The impact of low BMI on life prognosis was significant in male PD patients. In females, a higher BMI showed a trend for better life prognosis.