Objective: To determine whether being overweight or obese contributes to disease progression and functional status in Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Background: While the tendency of PD patients to be underweight is well documented, overweight and obese patients with this disorder are underrecognized. In fact, excess body weight is prevalent in patients with PD. However, no previous study has assessed the impact of being overweight or obese on disease progression and functional status in PD.

Method: A total of 399 drug-naive patients with early PD were classified into normal weight (body mass index of 18.5 to 24.9, n=139), overweight (25.0 to 29.9, n=167), and obese (30.0 or more, n=93) groups. The primary outcome was the development of functional dependency. Functional dependency was defined as a Schwab and England score of less than 80% at any time point that remained throughout follow-up. The secondary outcomes were the change in the Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) motor score and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score across visits.

Results: Over a 5-year follow-up period, the incidence of dependency was higher in the obese group than in the normal weight group (p=0.001). No difference was observed between the overweight and normal weight groups (p=0.429). The multivariable Cox model confirmed that obesity, but not being overweight, increased the risk of dependency (hazard ratio 2.63, 95% confidence interval 1.32–5.23, p=0.006). The increase in the MDS-UPDRS motor score was greater in the overweight (p=0.004) and obese (p<0.001) groups than in the normal weight group. Changes in the MoCA score did not differ among the groups (p=0.962).

Conclusion: We found that obesity is related to an increased risk of functional dependency and rapid motor progression in PD patients. Although being overweight did not increase the risk of dependency, this condition was associated with rapid motor progression.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/impact-of-overweight-and-obesity-on-functional-and-clinical-outcomes-of-early-parkinsons-disease/