Gout Linked to Higher Risk for Incident Parkinson's Disease in Older Adults

A study presented at the 2018 American College of Rheumatology and Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals Annual Meeting suggests a connection between gout and incident Parkinson's disease in older adults, reports Rheumatology Advisor . Researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham convened relevant participants from the 5 percent Medicare claims data between 2006 and 2012. Included were 1.72 million people with a mean age of 75 and a mean Charlson-Romano comorbidity index score of 1.60. Of the participants, 22,636 people developed incident Parkinson's during follow-up, and gout was associated with a higher risk of Parkinson's disease in the main analysis at a hazard ratio of 1.14. These findings were supported by sensitivity analyses, and although gender and race differences did not appear to be relevant, risk varied to some degree by age. Participants between 65 and 75, between 75 and 85, and older than 85 had respective hazard ratios of incident Parkinson's disease with gout of 1.27, 1.07, and 0.97. The researchers noted the strongest link between gout and Parkinson's disease was exhibited by individuals between 65 and 75 compared with other age groups. They suggested "mechanisms of this increased risk need to be evaluated in future studies."