How do you counsel patients with Parkinson's disease who are interested in starting GLP-1 agonists for neuroprotective benefits?

This is an important question, thank you. The Parkinson's disease community has been desperate to find an intervention other than exercise that can slow the progression of the disease and provide neuroprotective benefits. We might be heading in the right direction with glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists.

GLP-1 receptor agonists have received much attention this past year noting cardiovascular health benefits. Additionally, there is interest in evaluating the neuroprotective propert...

I currently do not recommend GLP-1 agonists for neuroprotection. There have been many scientific discussions about the great divide between preclinical studies and clinical trials in neuroprotection, and I feel that history has shown poor correlation so far in typical neurodegenerative diseases. The FS-ZONE NINDS study is a good example involving an anti-diabetic drug (pioglitazone). There were several publications prior to the study showing promising pre-clinical and retrospective results. (Not...

Tell patients that these medications are not yet approved but we may soon have a long-term answer for PD.