Researchers are reporting that subtle changes in heart structure and function in early adulthood are linked to a decline in thinking and memory skills in midlife. The findings could lead to the use of heart scans for early detection of cognitive decline, they say.
Cardiovascular risks factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes have long been linked to a greater risk of cognitive impairment. But much less is known about the association between heart structure and function and cognitive function, especially in midlife.
Researchers examined data from 2,653 participants from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study, a long-term investigation of cardiovascular disease beginning in young adulthood. Using echocardiograms, they followed the participants for over 25 years to assess subclinical changes in their heart structure and function and then measured these changes against thinking and memory skills in midlife.
The researchers found that certain subclinical changes in heart structure and function—including a greater than average increase in left atrial volume--were linked to cognitive decline in midlife. The study, funded in part by the NHLBI, appeared in Neurology, the journal of the American Academy of Neurology.