The elderly people people who get statins - the most widely prescribed drugs for reducing the cholesterol - are less likely to develop parkinsonism, the group of neurological conditions that cause motor problems, tremors, slowed movement and stiffness (Parkinson's disease is the best known cause of parkinsonism). This is the conclusion of a new American scientific study.
The researchers at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, who published the study in the American Academy of Neurology's journal Neurology, analysed data on 2,841 people with an average age of 76 who had no symptoms of parkinsonism at the start of the study. Of these, 936 (a rate of 33%) were taking statins.
During the six-year study, approximately 1,432 or 50% showed signs of parkinsonism. Among those taking statins, 45% developed such parkinsonian symptoms, compared to an increased rate of 53% among those not treated with statins.
After taking into account other factors such as age, gender, smoking and diabetes that could influence the risk of parkinsonism, researchers found that people taking statins have an average 16% lower risk of developing Parkinson's over the next six years. In addition, it was found that those taking high-dose statins had a 7% lower risk of parkinsonism than those taking low-dose statins.
“Our findings suggest that people who use statins may have a lower risk of parkinsonism, and this is probably partly due to the protective effect that statins have on the arteries of the brain,” said lead researcher Dr Shahram Oveisgaran.
The researchers also looked at the brains of 1,044 people who died during the study and found that those who had taken statins were on average 37% less likely to have atherosclerosis.
“More research is needed, but statins may be a treatment option in the future that will help reduce the impact of parkinsonism in the general population of older people, not just people with high cholesterol or those in a risk group for stroke,” according to Oveisgaran.
