Parkinson's Disease in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Anna Drelich-Zbroja1, Mateusz Cheda1, Maryla Kuczyńska1
1Department of Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, Medical University of Lublin, 20-059 Lublin, Poland.
Abstract:
In this review we attempt to collate the existing scientific evidence regarding the possible role of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD), as well as to investigate the impact of PD/parkinsonism on the clinical course of the viral infection itself. Since etiology of PD is not completely understood, various studies suggest different potential links between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and PD. Suggested connections include, among others, similar prodromal symptoms, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system involvement, or gut microbiome dysbiosis participation. Despite the initial assumptions that, as a mainly elderly population suffering from rigidity of respiratory muscles, impairment of cough reflex, and dyspnea, PD patients would be more susceptible to viral infection, and would experience a more aggressive course of COVID-19, the published scientific reports contain mutually exclusive data that require further investigation and meta-analysis.
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