Fluctuating blood pressure can increase the risk of dementia and vascular problems in older people, a new study by Australian researchers has warned.
Researchers from the University of South Australia (UniSA) who conducted the study found a connection between short blood pressure (BP) variations over the course of a day as well as over multiple days or weeks and decreased cognition.
Elevated changes in systolic blood pressure, which gauges the pressure within arteries during a heartbeat, are also connected to artery stiffening, which is linked to heart disease.
While it is often recognised that high blood pressure increases the risk of dementia, blood pressure fluctuations receive less attention.
“Clinical treatments focus on hypertension, while ignoring the variability of blood pressure,” lead author Daria Gutteridge said in the paper published in the journal Cerebral Circulation – Cognition and Behaviour. “
Blood vessel health and dementia risk appear to be increased by blood pressure fluctuations over short and long time periods, according to Gutteridge.
In order to investigate the mechanisms behind the relationship between blood pressure variations and dementia, the researchers enlisted seventy-five healthy older persons, aged 60-80, who did not exhibit any symptoms of cognitive impairment or dementia.
They underwent a cognitive exam, had their blood pressure checked, and had transcranial doppler sonography and pulse wave analysis used to determine the arterial stiffness in their brain and arteries.
