PARKINSONS-DISEASE, DYSANTONOMY, AND AUTOANTIBODIES DIRECTED AGAINST SYMPATHETIC NEURONS

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  • 1 January 1980
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 136  (3) , 221-233
Abstract
Possible correlations between autoantibodies directed against sympathetic structures (Ab. S) in Parkinson''s disease and the dysautonomia that may be associated with it were evaluated in 85 Parkinsonian patients and 85 controls. In patients with Parkinson''s disease, the immunological study was coupled with an evaluation of functional signs of anomalies of neurovegetative function and tests for postural hypotension. The remarkable frequency of these autoantibodies in patients with Parkinson''s disease (66%) was confirmed; they were present in only 20% of control subjects. Positive results were more frequent in early onset, long-standing cases. The presence of Ab. S in 85% of the patients in whom the disease had started before 50 yr of age could mean that these antibodies might constitute a marker for Parkinson''s disease among other parkinsonian conditions. No correlation between Ab. S and the existence of a dysautonomia was found; their frequency is slightly higher in patients with Parkinson''s disease and postural hypotension (75%). This finding, and the frequency and plurality of the mechanism of postural hypotension in elderly subjects, suggests a correlation with some types of postural hypotension.