Researchers from the University of Adelaide hope to better understand why some Parkinson's patients experience a marked drop in their blood pressure after a meal.

The medical condition known as POSTPRANDIAL HYPOTENTION can cause Parkinson's patients to faint immediately after eating, increasing their chances of injury. This is a cause for concern especially in older patients, who are more likely to be hospitalized after a fall. A new study conducted by researchers and doctors from the University of Adelaide and the Royal Adelaide Hospital examined this problem in those suffering from Parkinson's disease. In her speech on the opening night of World Parkinson's Day (Thursday, April 11), research leader Professor Karen Jones said that it is still not clear why so many Parkinson's patients experience such a significant drop in blood pressure after eating.

"A drop in blood pressure after a meal is almost incomprehensible in the medical world, and there is low awareness of this medical condition among family doctors and in the community. The condition is different from a drop in blood pressure when you go from sitting to standing, and it has no effective treatment," says Professor Jones from the University of Adelaide School of Medicine in the Endocrine Unit and the Metabolic of the Royal Adelaide Hospital.

"The research we are conducting will help us better understand the mechanisms involved in postprandial hypotension, so we hope that the results of the research will bring relief to those suffering from Parkinson's disease and other diseases that are accompanied by this complication. The research is led by a PhD student at the School of Medicine, Lawrence Traheir, who specifically examines the The relationship between the emptying of the digestive system and changes in blood pressure. "How quickly the stomach empties from the food that passes into the intestines and the changes that occur in the blood flow in the intestines, can be the key points for a better understanding of why these drops in the blood pressure of these patients occur after a meal," says Traheir. "An abnormal rhythm of Stomach emptying - too fast or too slow - can be due to a wide variety of reasons, including medications used in Parkinson's patients. So a better understanding of the rate of gastric emptying in these patients will be important in this study."

"Up to 50% of Parkinson's disease patients, the researchers think, experience a drop in blood pressure after a meal. So our research can help many people."

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Source: MEDICALXPRESS.COM