Folate and vitamin B12 levels in levodopa-treated Parkinson's disease patients: their relationship to clinical manifestations, mood and cognition

Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2008;14(4):321-5. doi: 10.1016/j.parkreldis.2007.10.002. Epub 2007 Dec 4.

Abstract

We tested the hypothesis that mood, clinical manifestations and cognitive impairment of levodopa-treated Parkinson's disease (PD) patients are associated with vitamin B12 and folate deficiency. To this end, we performed this cross-sectional study by measuring serum folate and vitamin B12 blood levels in 111 consecutive PD patients. Levodopa-treated PD patients showed significantly lower serum levels of folate and vitamin B12 than neurological controls, while depressed patients had significantly lower serum folate levels as compared to non-depressed. Cognitively impaired PD patients exhibited significantly lower serum vitamin B12 levels as compared to cognitively non-impaired. In conclusion, lower folate levels were associated with depression, while lower vitamin B12 levels were associated with cognitive impairment. The effects of vitamin supplementation merit further attention and investigation.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial

MeSH terms

  • Affect / drug effects*
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Analysis of Variance
  • Antiparkinson Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Cognition / drug effects*
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
  • Female
  • Folic Acid / blood*
  • Humans
  • Levodopa / therapeutic use*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Neuropsychological Tests
  • Parkinson Disease* / blood
  • Parkinson Disease* / drug therapy
  • Parkinson Disease* / physiopathology
  • Vitamin B 12 / blood*

Substances

  • Antiparkinson Agents
  • Levodopa
  • Folic Acid
  • Vitamin B 12