Nicotine Gum as a Therapeutic Approach for Low Blood Pressure in Parkinson's Disease: A Randomized Pilot Study.
Level 2 - randomized trial
Individual double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized crossover trial
PubMed 29228369 · doi:10.1093/ntr/ntx263
What was done
Ten individuals with Parkinson's disease and low blood pressure (mean age 69.3 ± 8.8 years) completed a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial on two separate days. Participants chewed either 4 mg nicotine gum or placebo gum for 30 minutes, with blood pressure measured every 10 minutes for 90 minutes.
What was found
On the nicotine gum day, baseline systolic blood pressure was 94.8 ± 4.4 mmHg, increasing to 115.8 ± 11.2 mmHg at 20 minutes, peaking at 133.2 ± 13.1 mmHg at 60 minutes, and decreasing to 121.6 ± 10.4 mmHg at 90 minutes. On the placebo day, baseline systolic blood pressure was 95.2 ± 3.0 mmHg and remained between 93.0 and 95.7 mmHg (SD range 2.1 to 3.7) across all time points.
Why it matters
Nicotine gum may offer a fast-acting intervention to acutely elevate blood pressure in Parkinson's disease patients suffering from autonomic hypotension.
Limits
The sample size was very small (n = 10). The study only assessed acute 90-minute responses to a single administration, and the abstract does not report diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, safety outcomes, or long-term clinical utility.