Objective:

To compare the demographic characteristics and exposure to endogenous, exogenous estrogens and progestins between patients with Early-Onset Parkinson’s Disease (EOPD), Late-Onset Parkinson’s Disease (LOPD), and EOPD-matched unaffected controls.

Background:

Parkinson's disease (PD) is almost twice as common in men as compared to women. Although this difference seems at least partially explained by hormonal factors, there is a paucity  of studies evaluating the role of hormonal exposure in women with EOPD.

Design/Methods:

We identified all female patients with EOPD in an incident cohort study from 1991 to 2010. All patients with motor symptoms onset before 50 years of age were defined as EOPD,  while LOPD patients had a motor symptom onset after 50 years of age. Each EOPD patient was matched to an unaffected control. Their medical records were reviewed to determine demographic characteristics, medical, reproductive, and menopausal history.

Results:

A total of 318 women with EOPD and 170 women with LOPD were identified. Of these, 87 EOPD patients, 91 controls, and 84 LOPD patients had sufficient data on hormonal exposure in their medical records to be included in this study. There were no significant differences in race, ethnicity, or BMI between the three groups. EOPD patients were significantly more likely to have used hormonal contraception compared to controls and LOPD patients (p<0.001). The number of pelvic surgeries and the use of perimenopausal hormonal therapy preceding the onset of motor symptoms (both p<0.001) was significantly higher in LOPD compared to EOPD.

Conclusions:

Our study reports that there are no significant differences in hormonal exposure between controls and EOPD patients, except for exposure to hormonal contraception. The differences in the history of hormonal contraception, oophorectomy and perimenopausal treatment between EOPD and LOPD are probably linked to the age gap between the two cohorts.