Nutritional Status Associated with Molecular Biomarkers, Physiological Indices, and Clinical Severity in Parkinson’s Disease Patients

Tsu-Kung Lin, Yung-Yee Chang, Nai-Ching Chen, Chia-Wei Liou, Min-Yu Lan, Ying-Fa Chen and Chia-Liang Tsai
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Tsu-Kung Lin: Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Yung-Yee Chang: Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Nai-Ching Chen: Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Chia-Wei Liou: Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Min-Yu Lan: Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Ying-Fa Chen: Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Chia-Liang Tsai: Institute of Physical Education, Health and Leisure Studies, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 16, 1-11

Abstract: This study is intended to explore the associations between nutritional status and molecular biomarkers and the clinical severity of Parkinson’s disease (PD), as well as to examine the differences in related factors between PD patients with normal nutrition and those with at risk for malnutrition. A cross-sectional assessment of 82 consecutive outpatients with PD was conducted using the mini nutritional assessment (MNA), Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), and the Hoehn and Yahr scale to determine the nutritional status, the clinical severity of PD, and the stage of the disease. Recordings of blood samples collected after 12 h of overnight fasting were also assessed in terms of serum levels of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine, cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), hemoglobin (Hgb), folate, and vitamin B12. All participants were divided into normal nutrition and malnutrition risk groups via the MNA scores to compare the above-mentioned parameters. The results showed that the total MNA score was significantly correlated with some parts of the UPDRS scale (e.g., Sections 1 and 2) and the levels of HbAlc in PD patients and those with risk for malnutrition, with significantly lower weight and body mass index (BMI), and with lower levels of Hgb and HDL. Higher levels of cholesterol were observed in the malnutrition risk group as compared with the normal nutrition group. The findings suggest that the clinical severity of PD is associated with nutritional status. Body weight, BMI, and the levels of Hgb, cholesterol, and HDL could be, at least partially, important biological markers to monitor malnutrition and the progression of the disease.

Keywords: Parkinson’s disease; cholesterol; HbA1c; Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale; mini nutritional assessment; malnutrition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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