High BP harms brain across lifespan

Elevated blood pressure (BP) levels exert a detrimental effect on the brain, and this effect accumulates over a person’s lifetime, as suggested in a study.

A total of 912 participants were included in the study. Cognitive function was assessed in middle age.  BMI, BP levels, atherogenic index of plasma, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol were measured four to 15 times between childhood and adulthood.

A distinct separation in systolic BP trajectories emerged between ages 25 and 45 years. During this period, participants who had cognition scores below the median had higher systolic BP levels than those who had higher cognition scores.

In a multivariable analysis, midlife cognitive function was associated with the total and incremental burden of systolic BP (total area under the curve [AUC], −0.086, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], −0.161 to −0.010; p=0.027; incremental AUC, −0.084, 95 percent CI, −0.144 to −0.017; p=0.007). These inverse associations were observed regardless of race and sex.

Single measures of systolic BP in childhood and adulthood showed no association with midlife cognitive function.

Finally, single and long-term measures of BMI, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and atherogenic index of plasma had a null association with midlife cognitive function, with the exception of the incremental AUC of BMI.

These findings underscore the importance of assessing people’s risk for cognitive decline and dementia using a life-course approach.