Abhay Singh
A significant shift in the perception of Parkinson’s disease is underway as new research challenges the notion of it being solely a brain disorder.
Recent findings, as reported by The Washington Post, indicate a compelling possibility that the roots of this condition may actually be traced back to the gastrointestinal tract.
This emerging understanding is gradually reshaping our view of the disease’s origins and treatment strategies.
“It starts in the gut and goes all the way up to the brain.”
Parkinson’s disease is frequently linked to gastrointestinal issues, which may manifest years before motor signs. These problems include delayed stomach emptying, drooling, difficulty swallowing, and constipation.
In fact, because gastrointestinal issues are common in patients with neurological illnesses, a condition known as “institutional colon” used to be associated with those residing in mental health facilities.
Subhash Kulkarni, an assistant professor at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center said “People have, for the longest time, described Parkinson’s disease as a top-down disease — so, it starts in the brain and then percolates down to the gut, and that’s why patients have issues with their gastrointestinal tract,”
He continued “Another hypothesis suggests that, in many patients, it may be a bottom-up approach, where it starts in the gut and goes all the way up to the brain.”
The study looked at the medical records of nearly 9,000 patients who had upper endoscopies between 2000 and 2005; it was published in JAMA Network Open.
Researchers discovered a considerable increased risk of Parkinson’s disease later in life in people with upper gastrointestinal tract mucosal injury. Years would frequently pass before these damages manifested as motor signs.
The findings of this study have important implications
Delaram Safarpour, an associate professor of neurology at Oregon Health & Science University, who was not involved in the research, said “We absolutely need to keep an eye on these patients who have a history of mucosal damage on their endoscopy,”
When neuroprotective therapies become accessible in the future, early detection of Parkinson’s disease would enable medical professionals to treat these people before they have motor symptoms, according to Safarpour.
The findings lend support to the ‘gut-first’ concept of Parkinson’s disease. Ted M. Dawson, a professor of neurodegenerative diseases at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, stated that when the gut-first hypothesis was initially proposed, there was a lot of skepticism in the field. But the data has been mounting, and this study is another step toward accepting that the gut is a primary conduit for Parkinson’s disease.
The results of this study have significant ramifications for Parkinson’s disease treatment and early detection. Physicians may be able to intervene early and maybe postpone or prevent the onset of motor symptoms by identifying patients who exhibit gastrointestinal symptoms and are therefore considered to be at risk.
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