Parkinson’s Drugs Are Risky For Your Heart

2 drugs that are commonly used to treat Parkinson’s disease,

pergolide and cabergoline, are far more riskier and produce heart valve defects in as many as 25% of the people who use them. The drugs are not the main treatment for Parkinson’s, but one of them is also sometimes used to treat restless legs syndrome.

Italian researchers found that roughly around one-fourth of Parkinson’s patients taking pergolide or cabergoline, sold as

Permax, Dostinex and other brands

, had moderate to severe heart valve problems. And German researchers found that people using either of the drugs were 5 to 7 times more likely to have leaky heart valves than those on other medications. The 2 studies are reported in Thursday’s New England Journal of Medicine.

Dr. Bryan Roth, of the University of North Carolina, said, “This is an extraordinarily high risk. It’s a bad side effect. As far as I know, there are no medications that can reverse it, and valve replacement surgery is the only solution for it”.

Pergolide, sold as Permax and other brands is also used to treat restless legs syndrome. Cabergoline, sold as Dostinex, Cabaser and other names, is widely used in Europe.

There are about 1.5 million Americans and 6 million people worldwide who sufer from Parkinson’s, which results in tremors, loss of muscle control and sometimes even death.

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