Bipolar disorder patients may be more likely to get Parkinson’s, a major review of evidence has suggested.
Scientists uncovered the link after they analysed the results of seven studies involving 4.3million participants.
Patients with the mood disorder were more than three times more likely to end up with Parkinson’s, according to the findings.
Scientists at the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Lisboa in Portugal did not prove bipolar disorder causes the crippling condition.
However, they believe drugs bipolar patients have to use for years to control their disorder could be to blame.
Another suggestion is that bipolar disorder may lower levels of dopamine, and a lack of dopamine is the main cause of Parkinson’s.
People with bipolar disorder are up to three times more likely to get Parkinson’s
Charities today welcomed the evidence published in JAMA Neurology — but warned the risk of a bipolar patient developing Parkinson’s is still slim.
Dr Patrícia Faustino and colleagues combined the results of seven existing studies that investigated the prevalence of Parkinson’s in bipolar patients.
One was conducted in the UK, involving more than 3,000 people, and TRAVESTIS LISBOA|TRAVESTIS-LISBOA.BEAUTY another took place in the US and had more than 3.4million people.
The findings suggest that a previous diagnosis of bipolar disorder was linked with a 3.35 increased likelihood of Parkinson’s.
A second analysis suggested bipolar patients face a 3.21-fold higher risk of getting the condition.