Hypertension in Middle Age Ups the Risk of Dementia in Later Years: Study

Having high blood pressure during middle age increases the risk of memory decline in later years, according to a study.

Hypertension and erratic blood pressure levels in adulthood up the chances of having heart diseases, stroke and massive damage to kidneys. Experts from the American Academy of Neurology found very high or low blood pressure during and in between heart beats injure the brain causing mild lesions and bleeding. The research finds that people with a history of high blood pressure and those who developed the condition in old age are susceptible to severe memory decline or dementia.

The study recorded blood pressure reading of 4,057 people when they were aged about 50 and did not have memory-related problems. Again when the participants were aged 76, their blood pressure readings were noted and researchers also examined their brain structure, volume and blood vessel damage with the help of MRI scans.

It was observed that having both high systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure was related to dementia in old age caused due to overall shrinkage in brain volume and grey matter. Patients with lower diastolic blood pressure also had notable decline in memory and thinking skills. The risk for dementia was 50 percent more in patients who did not have hypertension in earlier part of their lives but developed it in later years.

"Our findings bring new insight into the relationship between a history of high blood pressure, blood pressure in old age, the effects of blood pressure on brain structure, and memory and thinking," said Lenore J. Launer, study author and a member of the American Academy of Neurology, in a news release.

 The study urges seniors to maintain normal blood pressure readings to ward off the risk of serious cognitive functioning and memory decline typical in the later period of life. Prolonged high blood pressure harms the brain that mostly ends up with injured blood vessels and lesions.

The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute on Aging, the Icelandic Heart Association, the Icelandic Parliament and Alzheimer Netherlands. More information is available online in the journal Neurology.