Association of change in cardiovascular risk factors with incident dementia

Sanaz Sedaghat*, Pamela L Lutsey, Yuekai Ji, Jean-Philippe Empana, Farzaneh Sorond, Timothy M Hughes, Thomas H Mosley, Rebecca F Gottesman, David S Knopman, Keenan A Walker, Vilmundur Gudnason, Lenore J Launer, Thomas T van Sloten

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

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Abstract

INTRODUCTION: We evaluated whether better cardiovascular health at midlife and improvement of cardiovascular health within midlife were associated with dementia risk.

METHODS: Two longitudinal population-based studies were used: Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) (n = 11,460/visits at ages 54 and 60), and Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility (AGES)-Reykjavik (n = 3907/visit at age 51). A cardiovascular health score (range 0-12/0-14, depending on diet availability) including six/seven items was calculated at each visit, with weight assigned to each item as poor (0), intermediate (1), or ideal (2). Cardiovascular health was defined as low (score 0-4/0-5), intermediate (5-7/6-9), or high (8-12/10-14). Incident dementia was ascertained through linkage to health records and with neuropsychological examinations.

RESULTS: Midlife high compared to low cardiovascular health (hazard ratios [HRs]: for ARIC: 0.60 [95% confidence interval: 0.52, 0.69]); for AGES-Reykjavik: 0.83 [0.66, 0.99] and improvement of cardiovascular health score within midlife (HR per one-point increase: ARIC: 0.94 [0.92, 0.96]) were associated with lower dementia risk.

DISCUSSION: Better cardiovascular health at midlife and improvement of cardiovascular health within midlife are associated with lower dementia risk.

HIGHLIGHTS: Cardiovascular health and dementia were studied in two large cohort studies. Better cardiovascular health at midlife relates to lower dementia risk. Improvement of cardiovascular health within midlife relates to lower dementia risk. Promotion of cardiovascular health at midlife can help to reduce dementia risk.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1821-1831
Number of pages11
JournalAlzheimer's & Dementia
Volume19
Issue number5
Early online date27 Oct 2022
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - May 2023

Keywords

  • cardiovascular health
  • dementia
  • life course
  • longitudinal
  • primordial prevention

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