Statins May Curb Parkinson’s Disease Risk

Regular use of cholesterol-lowering statins may help reduce the risk for Parkinson’s disease (PD), particularly in adults younger than age 60 years. The data suggest that long-term use of statins could provide a benefit against risk of developing PD. The analysis included 38,192 men from Health Professionals Follow-Up Study and 90,874 women from the Nurses’ Health Study. The researchers report that the incidence of PD was lower among statin users relative to nonusers. The pooled relative risk (RR) of PD was 0.74 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.54 – 1.00; P = .049) comparing current statin users with nonusers. There was a significant interaction between statin use and age in relation to PD risk (P for interaction = .03). A significant protective effect was apparent in subjects younger than 60 years at the beginning of follow-up but not among those who were older. Arch Neurol. 2012;69:380-384