High Blood Pressure Linked to Dementia

by Aimee Amodio | More from this Blogger

14 Dec 2007 03:35 PM

Did you really need ANOTHER reason to take care of your high blood pressure? Here's one for you -- high blood pressure has been linked to dementia by research from Columbia University Medical Center in New York.

Researchers tracked more than nine hundred elderly people in New York starting in 1992. The average age of the study participants was seventy-six. None of the participants had any form of cognitive impairment (dementia) when the study began.

Participants were examined every eighteen months for more than four years. Approximately one third of study participants developed mild cognitive impairment during the course of the study. People with high blood pressure had a forty percent higher risk of developing mild cognitive impairment than people who did not. People with high blood pressure also had a seventy percent higher risk of developing dementia that does not involve broad memory difficulties.

The bottom line: high blood pressure was linked to mild cognitive impairment -- a condition that can be a precursor to dementia, especially vascular dementia. Vascular dementia is the second most common form of dementia after Alzheimer's disease, and is often associated with stroke. People with mild cognitive impairment may have difficulty with language, memory, attention span, and other mental function. The difficulty is noticeable both by tests and by regular interaction.

Preventing and treating high blood pressure may have a significant impact on lowering the risk of developing dementia. Other research has been inconclusive about a link between high blood pressure and dementia, but the Columbia University results seem much clearer.

High blood pressure has also been linked with coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other cardiovascular complications. Managing your blood pressure can help lower your risk of a whole host of serious health issues. You can read more about high blood pressure here at Families.com.

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