Dopamine-based drugs to treat Parkinson’s disease are responsible for rather disabling compulsive behaviors, according to the results of a study published in the medical journal JAMA Internal Medicine. Indeed, they would cause disorders such as hypersexuality, kleptomania or gambling addiction.
American researchers conducted a meta-analysis of all side effects (there are still 2.7 million adverse effects) of drugs identified by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA, the US Food and Drug Administration). medications). Scientists wanted to understand whether dopamine-based treatments, used for restless leg disease and that of Parkinson’s were responsible for behavioral disorders.
The scientists discovered that sexual hyperactivity, gambling addiction or kleptomania were correlated with the use of 1580 drugs including 710 based on dopamine and 870 for other treatments.
“There is a greater risk of developing compulsive behaviors with pramipexole and ropinirole,” explains Thomas J. Moore, AB researcher at the Institute for Drug Safety in Virginia (USA).
“Our results confirm that dopamine can cause behavioral problems. Warnings should be clearer and more precise on all drugs containing dopamine,” concludes the researcher.
Parkinson’s disease in numbers
Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in France, after Alzheimer’s disease.
It is manifested by tremors and difficulty in moving and performing everyday actions. It comes from a decrease in the cerebral production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter necessary to properly control movements.
Every hour, a new case of Parkinson’s is detected in our country. Today, more than 150,000 people suffer from it in the country and, contrary to popular belief, it is not a disease reserved for the elderly since 20% of patients are under 50 years old.
