Abstract
Small fiber neuropathy (SFN) has been suggested as a trigger of restless legs syndrome (RLS). An increased prevalence of peripheral neuropathy has been demonstrated in Parkinson’s disease (PD). We aimed to investigate, in a cross-sectional manner, whether SFN is overrepresented in PD patients with concurrent RLS relative to PD patients without RLS, using in vivo corneal confocal microscopy (IVCCM) and quantitative sensory testing (QST) as part of small fiber assessment. Study participants comprised of age- and sex-matched PD patients with (n = 21) and without RLS (n = 21), and controls (n = 13). Diagnosis of RLS was consolidated with the sensory suggested immobilization test. Assessments included nerve conduction studies (NCS), Utah Early Neuropathy Scale (UENS), QST, and IVCCM, with automated determination of corneal nerve fiber length (CNFL) and branch density (CNBD) from wide-area mosaics of the subbasal nerve plexus. Plasma neurofilament light (p-NfL) was determined as a measure of axonal degeneration. No significant differences were found between groups when comparing CNFL (p = 0.81), CNBD (p = 0.92), NCS (p = 0.82), and QST (minimum p = 0.54). UENS scores, however, differed significantly (p = 0.001), with post-hoc pairwise testing revealing higher scores in both PD groups relative to controls (p = 0.018 and p = 0.001). Analysis of all PD patients (n = 42) revealed a correlation between the duration of l-dopa therapy and CNBD (ρ = −0.36, p = 0.022), and p-NfL correlated with UENS (ρ = 0.35, p = 0.026) and NCS (ρ = −0.51, p = 0.001). Small and large fiber neuropathy do not appear to be associated with RLS in PD. Whether peripheral small and/or large fiber pathology associates with central neurodegeneration in PD merits further longitudinal studies.
Highlights
The prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) has been reported as both higher[1,2] and equal[3,4] to that in the normal population
Fifty-nine participants were included, of which three in the PD with RLS (PD+RLS) group and one in the control group were excluded during the study period
The main finding of this study is that small fiber neuropathy (SFN), as assessed by in vivo corneal confocal microscopy (IVCCM), quantitative sensory testing (QST), and Utah Early Neuropathy Scale (UENS), appears not to be associated with RLS in PD
Summary
The prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) has been reported as both higher[1,2] and equal[3,4] to that in the normal population. The pathogenesis of RLS is not fully understood, but studies have suggested different underlying pathophysiological mechanisms. These include disturbed cerebral iron metabolism, as assessed by imaging[6,7], cerebrospinal fluid[8] and pathological[9,10] studies, and disruption of central dopaminergic pathways as evaluated by pathological studies[11]. An increased prevalence of small[15] and large fiber[16,17] neuropathy has been demonstrated in PD, suggested in part to reflect an underlying L-dopa-mediated disturbance of vitamin B12 metabolism[16,17]. Considering reports of peripheral neuropathy in L-dopa naïve PD patients[18], and the detection of deposits of alpha-synuclein (α-syn) in peripheral small nerve fibers[15], neuropathy has been proposed to reflect an intrinsic disease feature of PD
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