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Cerebral microbleeds aggravate severity of motor function, cognitive and emotional status in Parkinson's disease
Tian Feng1, Hongzhou Zuo1, Xinyi Du1
1Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital Chongqing Medical University, 400016, Chongqing, China.
Background:
Cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) are highly prevalent in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), but their impact on clinical symptom severity and genetic association remains unclear. This study investigates the relationship between CMBs and PD severity.
Methods:
We recruited patients with PD from the outpatient clinic and inpatient wards of the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. All participants had undergone susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) and had complete clinical assessments. Participants were categorized into groups based on their CMB count. We subsequently analyzed the risk factors for CMBs and examined the correlations between CMB burden and motor, cognitive, and emotional function, respectively. Furthermore, utilizing a genome-wide association study (GWAS) dataset, we investigated the association between genetic susceptibility to CMBs and PD severity preliminarily by Mendelian randomization (MR).
Results:
Among 158 patients with PD, 53 (33.5%) were found to have CMBs. Age, disease duration, and hypertension were independently associated with the presence of CMBs (p < 0.05). Multiple linear regression analysis indicated that a higher CMB burden was associated with poorer motor function and the presence of anxiety disorders. To gain deeper insight into the relationship between CMB and severity of PD, MR analysis further suggested that genetic susceptibility to CMBs is potentially causally linked to worse motor function (OR = 1.301, p = 0.047), lower scores on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) (OR = 0.207, p = 0.021) and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) (OR = 4.915, p = 1.63E-08), as well as an increased risk of dementia in PD (OR = 4.915, p = 1.63E-08).
Conclusion:
The high prevalence of CMBs was associated with age, disease duration, and hypertension. Furthermore, our MR analysis provides preliminary evidence that a higher CMB burden may exacerbate the severity of Parkinson's disease.
Insights
Cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) are common in Parkinson's disease (PD). Higher CMB burden is linked to worse motor function and cognitive decline in PD patients, suggesting CMBs may worsen disease severity.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Neuroimaging
- Genetics
Background:
- Cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) are prevalent in Parkinson's disease (PD).
- The impact of CMBs on PD clinical severity and genetic links is not well understood.
- This study investigates the association between CMBs and PD severity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of CMBs in PD patients.
- To identify risk factors associated with CMBs in PD.
- To examine the relationship between CMB burden and motor, cognitive, and emotional functions in PD.
- To explore the genetic link between CMBs and PD severity using Mendelian randomization.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 158 PD patients from Chongqing Medical University.
- Utilized susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) for CMB detection.
- Performed clinical assessments for motor, cognitive, and emotional function.
- Conducted genome-wide association study (GWAS) and Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses.
Main Results:
- 33.5% of PD patients had CMBs.
- Age, disease duration, and hypertension were risk factors for CMBs.
- Higher CMB burden correlated with poorer motor function and anxiety.
- MR analysis indicated genetic susceptibility to CMBs is linked to worse motor function, lower cognitive scores (MoCA, MMSE), and increased dementia risk in PD.
Conclusions:
- CMBs are common in PD, associated with age, disease duration, and hypertension.
- Increased CMB burden may exacerbate Parkinson's disease severity.
- Preliminary MR analysis suggests a potential causal relationship between genetic susceptibility to CMBs and PD severity.
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