Association between levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in plasma and freezing of gait in Parkinson's disease.

This study explored the potential relationship between levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in plasma and freezing of gait (FOG) in Parkinson's disease (PD) in China. A total of 72 healthy subjects, 62 PD patients with FOG, and 83 PD patients without FOG from our center were enrolled in this prospective study. Patients with FOG showed significantly higher hs-CRP levels than controls, but patients without FOG did not. Binary logistic regression analysis identified levels of hs-CRP in plasma to be an independent risk factor for FOG among the patients in our cohort (OR 6.371, 95% CI 2.589-15.678, p < 0.001). In fact, a cut-off level of 0.935 mg/L distinguished patients with or without FOG [area under the ROC curve (AUC) = 0.908, sensitivity 87.1%, specificity 89.2%]. Our study suggests that high levels of hs-CRP in plasma are associated with the occurrence of FOG in PD. The pooled data combined with a previous study carried out in Spain also indicate a positive association between plasma hs-CRP levels and FOG in PD. However, more research is still needed to verify the plasma hs-CRP as a potential biomarker of FOG.