Arterial stiffness and risk of dementia in late life: The ARIC neurocognitive study
Jenna Barbee, James Russell Pike, Jingkai Wei, Hirofumi Tanaka, David S. Knopman, Anna Kucharska‐Newton, A. Richey Sharrett, Timothy M. Hughes, Kunihiro Matsushita, Thomas H. Mosley, Michelle L. Meyer, Priya PaltaAbstract
INTRODUCTION
Associations of arterial stiffness, measured through pulse wave velocity (PWV), with incident dementia may be driven by age‐related structural changes to the arterial wall or by elevated blood pressure.
METHODS
Dementia‐free White or Black participants in the community‐based Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) cohort study with measures of PWV were examined. The associations of carotid‐femoral PWV (cfPWV) and total, structural, and load‐dependent PWV with dementia were estimated using Poisson regression models and Cox proportional hazards models. Dementia cases were defined by physician‐adjudicated review, telephone interviews, hospitalization records, and death certificates.
RESULTS
Of 4818 participants included in the study population (mean age: 75 years; 41% male, 21% Black), 1067 (22%) developed dementia over a median follow‐up of 9.0 years. Higher cfPWV, total PWV, structural PWV, and load‐dependent PWV were associated with greater dementia risk.
DISCUSSION
Both structural and pressure‐related arterial stiffness mechanisms may underlie the link between PWV and dementia.