2023-06-13 07:11:16
Severe pain in toes and fingers… Higher risk of dementia, Parkinson’s disease, and tremor, brain gray matter loss
Patients with gout have a significantly higher risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases, such as dementia of any cause, Parkinson’s disease, and essential tremor (tremors) such as tremor of unknown origin, a study has found.
A research team at Oxford University in England analyzed various data from 11,735 gout patients and 32,202 people (control group) who were not diagnosed with gout. These gout patients, aged between 40 and 69, participated in the UK Biobank study, and 1165 of them had brain scans.
According to the study results, patients with gout had a 43% higher incidence of Parkinson’s disease compared to the control group. In particular, the incidence of essential tremor was approximately 7 times higher. The risk of dementia in patients with gout was 60% higher than in the control group. The risk of dementia was highest within 3 years following diagnosis of gout, and decreased therefollowing.
During the follow-up period (up to 11 years or more) of the UK Biobank study, the mortality rate of patients with gout was approximately 11%, more than twice as high as that of the control group (approximately 5%). Gout patients also showed reduced brain gray matter volume and higher brain iron levels.
Gout is an inflammatory arthritis that affects 1-4% of the world’s population and causes excruciating pain. If too much uric acid is produced in the body or not excreted from the body, needle-shaped uric acid crystals form as the concentration of uric acid in the blood rises. Gout is a disease caused by uric acid crystals sticking to joint cartilage, tendons, and surrounding tissues. When uric acid crystals stick to the urinary system, it causes kidney stones (nephrolithiasis) or nephropathy. In the past, gout was especially common in men in their 40s and 50s, but recently it also occurs in people in their 20s and 30s.
Uric acid is formed when purines are broken down in the body. Therefore, eating foods that are relatively low in purine content (fruits, vegetables, nuts) in moderation can help prevent gout. It is advisable for gout patients to stop drinking alcohol, maintain a normal weight, and eat foods that are low in purines, calories, and carbohydrates. It is also good to consume enough dairy products and protein.
For patients diagnosed with gout, the research team emphasized that cognitive function and motor symptoms should be thoroughly monitored while keeping in mind the risk of various neurodegenerative diseases.
The results of this study (Association of gout with brain reserve and vulnerability to neurodegenerative disease) were published in Nature Communications.
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