Alexandre Mendes1,2, Alexandra Gonçalves1,2, Nuno Vila-Chã1,2, Inês Moreira2, Joana Fernandes2, Joana Damásio1, Armando Teixeira-Pinto3,4, Ricardo Taipa1,5, António Bastos Lima1, Sara Cavaco1,2. 1. Serviço de Neurologia, Centro Hospitalar do Porto, Porto, Portugal. 2. Unidade Multidisciplinar de Investigação Biomedica, Instituto Ciências Biomedicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal. 3. CINTESIS, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal. 4. Screening and Test Evaluation Program, Sydney School of Public Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia. 5. Serviço de Neuropatologia, Centro Hospitalar do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Alpha-synuclein (α-Syn) is particularly abundant in the vermiform appendix, which makes this structure an anatomical candidate for the initiation of Parkinson's disease (PD) pathology. We hypothesized that history of appendectomy might affect PD clinical onset. METHODS: A total of 295 PD patients enrolled in a comprehensive observational study were asked about past history of appendectomy. Cox's regression, with a time-dependent covariate, explored the effects of appendectomy on age at PD onset. RESULTS: Thirty-four patients (11.5%) had appendectomy before PD onset. There was no significant effect of appendectomy on age at PD onset for the entire cohort (P = 0.153). However, among patients with late onset (≥55 years), we found evidence that those with past appendectomy had more years of life without PD symptoms than patients without appendectomy (P = 0.040). No association was found for the young-onset group (P = 0.663). CONCLUSIONS: An apparent relationship was observed between appendectomy and PD onset in the late PD cohort.
BACKGROUND:Alpha-synuclein (α-Syn) is particularly abundant in the vermiform appendix, which makes this structure an anatomical candidate for the initiation of Parkinson's disease (PD) pathology. We hypothesized that history of appendectomy might affect PD clinical onset. METHODS: A total of 295 PDpatients enrolled in a comprehensive observational study were asked about past history of appendectomy. Cox's regression, with a time-dependent covariate, explored the effects of appendectomy on age at PD onset. RESULTS: Thirty-four patients (11.5%) had appendectomy before PD onset. There was no significant effect of appendectomy on age at PD onset for the entire cohort (P = 0.153). However, among patients with late onset (≥55 years), we found evidence that those with past appendectomy had more years of life without PD symptoms than patients without appendectomy (P = 0.040). No association was found for the young-onset group (P = 0.663). CONCLUSIONS: An apparent relationship was observed between appendectomy and PD onset in the late PD cohort.
Authors: Bryan A Killinger; Zachary Madaj; Jacek W Sikora; Nolwen Rey; Alec J Haas; Yamini Vepa; Daniel Lindqvist; Honglei Chen; Paul M Thomas; Patrik Brundin; Lena Brundin; Viviane Labrie Journal: Sci Transl Med Date: 2018-10-31 Impact factor: 17.956