title: Carotid intima-media thickness in Parkinson's disease.
abstract: There have been a few studies and inconsistent results regarding the coincidence of Parkinson's disease (PD) and atherosclerotic diseases, such as cerebrovascular disease. Carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) is a known marker for subclinical atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to investigate the carotid IMT between PD patients and controls. We studied 43 patients with PD and 86 matched controls. The carotid IMT in PD patients was significantly smaller than in controls (0.796 +/- 0.179 mm vs. 0.913 +/- 0.237 mm, P < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, the carotid IMT was inversely associated with the duration of levodopa medication and the severity of PD. These results suggest that PD patients have a lower risk of atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Korea University College of Medicine, Ansan, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jong-Moon
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Kun-Woo
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Woo-Keun
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Seo
authors.forename: Moon Ho
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Changsu
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Inho
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Jo
authors.forename: Sangmee
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ahn Jo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000978:Antiparkinson Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007980:Levodopa / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D014463:Ultrasonography
chemical_list: D000978:Antiparkinson Agents; D007980:Levodopa