A domestic research team has found clues for early diagnosis and tailored treatment of Parkinson's disease. Through imaging tests and genetic analysis, the risk of the disease can be identified sooner, which is expected to help with personalized management for each patient.
On the 19th, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the National Institute of Health analyzed data from a domestic Parkinson's disease patient cohort built through the Brain disease research infrastructure establishment project (BRIDGE) and announced research results that can be used for early diagnosis and personalized management. This project is a national research infrastructure initiative that integrates diverse research resources—clinical, imaging, and genomic—for the accurate diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of brain diseases and opens them to researchers.
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative brain disorder best known for motor symptoms such as tremors, muscle rigidity, and slow movement. But in reality, patients also experience a variety of symptoms, including cognitive decline, sleep disorders, depression, and autonomic nervous system abnormalities. Because the rate of disease progression and symptoms vary by patient, early diagnosis and prognosis prediction are important.
Since 2021, the National Institute of Health has built the nation's first government-led Parkinson's disease patient cohort and has been conducting long-term follow-up on clinical, imaging, genetic, and autonomic nervous system information for Korean patients. The current study was also conducted based on this cohort data.
The researchers analyzed I-MIB imaging test data from 233 patients with Parkinson's disease. The test is mainly performed to identify abnormalities in cardiac nerve function in Parkinson's patients, but the researchers focused on the concurrent signal observed in the "thyroid" area during the test.
The analysis found that patients with this signal were more likely to show abnormalities in blood pressure regulation, such as orthostatic hypotension or nocturnal hypertension. Abnormal blood pressure control can cause dizziness, falls, and fainting, greatly affecting patients' daily lives. The researchers said that examining the thyroid-area signal together may help detect autonomic nervous system abnormalities earlier in the initial stages of Parkinson's disease.
The team also conducted long-term follow-up of 247 Korean patients with Parkinson's disease to analyze the relationship between genes and the pace of disease progression. They found that patients with certain genetic types tended to experience faster declines in motor ability and cognitive function than other patients.
The researchers explained that these results can be used to predict disease progression patterns in advance based on a patient's genetic information and to tailor management to each patient's characteristics. The study also shows that Parkinson's is not simply a disease of tremors or rigidity but a complex disorder influenced by the autonomic nervous system, cognitive function, and genetic factors together.
The researchers said, "These results were possible because we accumulated and analyzed clinical, imaging, genetic information, and autonomic nervous system indicators over a long period," and added, "We will continue to more precisely identify disease characteristics in Korean patients with Parkinson's disease and expand the evidence that can be used for early diagnosis and personalized management."
Kim Won-ho, head of the Department of Convergence Research on Chronic Diseases at the National Institute of Health, said, "We plan to continue longitudinal follow-up of the Parkinson's disease cohort and to advance integrated analyses linking clinical, imaging, genomic, and biobank resources," and added, "We will pursue follow-up studies to develop models for high-risk group screening and prognosis prediction and to establish strategies for managing non-motor symptoms."
Im Seung-kwan, commissioner of the agency, said, "Because Parkinson's disease varies widely in symptoms and progression by patient, cohort-based long-term follow-up research is very important," and added, "These research outcomes are meaningful in that they have laid the groundwork—through national research infrastructure—for developing early diagnosis and personalized management strategies that reflect the characteristics of Korean patients with Parkinson's disease, and we will continue to strengthen the research base to overcome brain diseases."