Session Information
Date: Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Session Title: Parkinson's Disease: Pathophysiology
Session Time: 1:45pm-3:15pm
Location: Exhibit Hall C
Objective: To evaluate if metabolic risk factors can affect the motor function of PD patients
Background: The etiology of PD remains unclear. It has been postulated that comorbid metabolic syndrome may affect the risks of neurodegenerative diseases such as PD. However, there is limited literature studying the relationship between metabolic risk factors and PD.
Methods: Study design: Retrospective study conducted in Queen Elizabeth Hospital between 2014 and 2016.
The metabolic risk factors were assessed by blood pressure and blood tests (Hba1c, fasting glucose and lipid profile).
1. Hba1c > 6.5%
2. Fasting glucose > 5.6 mmol / L
3. Raised blood pressure ≥ 140 / 90 mmHg; Use of anti-hypertensives
4. Raised serum triglyceride ≥ 1.7 mmol / L
5. Reduced HDL-C < 1.0 mmol / L
The motor function was evaluated by
1. Modified Hoehn and Yahr (H&Y) staging
2. Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) part II, III and total score
3. Time Up and Go (TUG) test
4. Schwab and England (S&E) Activities of Daily Living (ADL) Scale
5. Number of falls
SPSS version 20 was used for statistical analysis.
Chi square and t tests were used to test for differences.
Results: In this study of 182 PD patients, we reported that serum triglyceride level has a negative relationship with motor function and functional status of PD patients.
However, a high systolic blood pressure was shown to be negatively associated with the daily functioning of PD patients.
A low HDL-C level was reported to be linked to the number of falls.
Nevertheless, other metabolic risk factors were not associated with their motor function.
Conclusions: Our study revealed that a high serum triglyceride level may have a protective effect on PD. However, other metabolic risk factors including a high systolic blood pressure and a low HDL-C level may be associated with poor functional status of PD patients.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
H. Chan, Y. Cheung, D. Chau, V. Lo, C. Woo, S. Tse, T. Fung, W. Fong. Metabolic syndrome: Its link with motor function of Parkinson’s disease (PD) [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2017; 32 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/metabolic-syndrome-its-link-with-motor-function-of-parkinsons-disease-pd/. Accessed June 14, 2025.« Back to 2017 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/metabolic-syndrome-its-link-with-motor-function-of-parkinsons-disease-pd/