Recent research suggests that a healthier heart in adulthood could mean fewer cognitive problems later in life.
The new findings of the study of development of coronary artery risk in young adults (CARDIA) show that people who had better cardiovascular health (CV) in their 20 years obtained higher scores on the tests of thought and memory 30 years later than their peers who had poorer CV health when they were young adults
“We have learned that vascular risk factors in middle age, rather than risk factors in old age, are particularly associated with cognition in old age,” study author Farzaneh Sorond, MD, PhD, told Medscape. Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois. Medical news
“Our findings from the CARDIA study extend this knowledge and show that vascular health during adulthood, rather than middle age, is also specifically associated with cerebral vascular health and cognitive function in middle age,” said Sorond.
“These results indicate that people should pay close attention to their health even in their 20s,” he said in a statement.
The findings were published before being presented at the next Annual Meeting 2020 of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN).
Early Prevention Key
The analysis examined data from 189 participants (45% women, 45% black) in the CARDIA study that were followed for 30 years. The average age at the beginning of the study was 24 years.
Vascular risk factors were evaluated eight times during the 30-year study period. A CV health score (range, 0-10) was calculated based on smoking status, body mass index, blood pressure, total cholesterol level and fasting glucose level.
In the final evaluation, which was carried out 30 years after the start of the study, dynamic cerebral self-regulation was calculated as the phase of transfer function of spontaneous oscillations in blood pressure and the velocity of flow in the middle cerebral artery by Doppler ultrasound transcranial
Cognition was assessed by a series of standard neuropsychological tests. Multivariate linear regression models were used to assess the association of heart health at each visit with cerebral self-regulation and cognition.
The results showed that participants with better CV health at the beginning of the study were more likely to have higher scores on cognitive tests 30 years later compared to those with worse CV health.
For example, in a test of attention skills in which scores ranged from 7 to 103, each highest point in the CV health score was associated with a higher score of 2.2 points in attention skills. These results were maintained after adjustment for other factors that could affect cognitive test scores, such as educational level.
Better CV health at baseline and at 7 years was also associated with significantly better dynamic cerebral self-regulation.
“Our findings suggest that the earlier vascular risk factors are modified and addressed, the more likely they will affect brain health throughout life,” Sorond said.
“In addition, these findings underscore the importance of primary prevention and of addressing the important knowledge gap that currently exists in this domain,” he added.
The full data of the study will be presented at the AAN meeting in April.
Good for the heart, good for the brain
Commenting on the findings of Medscape Medical News, Rebecca Edelmayer, PhD, director of scientific engagement at the Alzheimer’s Association, said the longitudinal study adds to the growing body of research that shows that “what is good for the heart is also good for the brain. “
“This is still a relatively small study, and larger studies have been published that show similar results,” said Edelmayer, who was not involved in the research.
He noted that the results of the large SPRINT-MIND trial, published last year in JAMA and reported by Medscape Medical News, “provided the strongest evidence to date on reducing the risk of mild cognitive impairment through blood pressure management. high”.
The Alzheimer’s Association has provided initial funding for SPRINT-MIND 2.0, a 2-year extension of the study to assess whether intensive blood pressure management reduces the risk of dementia from all causes.
Support for the current study was provided by the National Institutes of Health, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Northwestern University, the University of Minnesota and the Foundation Research Institute Kaiser Sorond and Edelmayer have not reported relevant financial relationships.
Annual Meeting 2020 of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN): Summary 1060. It will be presented in April 2020.
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