[The high blood pressure in patients with Parkinson's disease]

To evaluate the relationships between blood pressure (BP), duration of the high BP, reaction of the cardiovascular system on the physical load with the duration of Parkinson's disease (PD) and motor disorders in PD patients.

Fifty-six women with PD and high BP in the anamnesis and 91 women with arterial hypertension, stage 1 were included in the study. The groups of the patients did not differ by age (67.14±7.75 vs. 67.24±5.70 years; p>0.05). The patients were asked about the duration of high BP, the maximal systolic and diastolic BP (SBP and DBP) and presence of antihypertensive therapy, the patients with PD were additionally asked about the duration of the disease, the medicine for PD treatment, the vegetative dysfunction features. The assessment of the orthostatic reaction was determined by transition of the patient from the supine position to the sitting position. Three types of the reaction were isolated: normal, orthostatic hypotension and hypertension. The assessment of motor function in patients with PD was performed using MDS UPDRS, part III.

Before and after the orthostatic test, patients with PD and history of arterial hypertension showed normal SBP and DBP levels, while those with isolated hypertension had elevated mean BP corresponding to the high-normal level: the difference in BP levels between the two groups was significant (134.89±17.19 vs. 124.64±18.19 mm Hg; p<0.05; 130.43±19.88 vs. 122.80±19.08 mm Hg; p<0.05). Patients with isolated hypertension were less likely to receive BP-lowering treatment - 30 (32.61%) vs. 10 (18.87%); p=0.04. There were no differences in the frequency of hypertensive and orthostatic reactions between the groups. The total score of motor disorders in patients with PD was correlated with the duration of high BP (R= -0.26; p=0.04). Among the patients with PD, 37 had hypertension prior to the neurologic disorder, 7 were diagnosed with two diseases simultaneously, while the remaining 12 had PD as the initial diagnosis, developing hypertension later in life. The score of the points of the motor disturbances was greater in patients who had developed two diseases simultaneously with the simultaneous developing of the illnesses (15.88±9.36 vs. 19.84±8.01 vs. 26.14±9.68; p<0.05, χ²=10.47, df=2).

The development of arterial hypertension in patients with PD aggravates the disease.