Women with Parkinson's disease may face a higher burden of Alzheimer's-related brain changes than men. Autopsy research presented at the European Academy of Neurology Congress 2026 found female patients carry markedly more amyloid plaque, a hallmark of Alzheimer's, despite similar cognitive test scores.
The study, from Mayo Clinic Arizona, analyzed 230 autopsy-confirmed Parkinson's cases. Researchers compared amyloid plaque measures and dementia rates between the sexes.
Across several measures, female patients carried more amyloid. Their mean cortical total plaque scores were 6.5 out of 15, compared to 4.9 in men. A high plaque burden was present in 56.8% of women but only 39.7% of men. After accounting for age and the APOE ε4 risk gene, women were more than twice as likely to be in the high-burden group.
Crucially, the two sexes showed no significant difference in Alzheimer's dementia rates or cognitive test scores.
Lead author Dr. Erika Driver-Dunckley suggested women may be more vulnerable to amyloid-driven pathology in Parkinson's. The authors call for further research to confirm the findings and uncover the biological mechanisms behind these sex differences.