![Preventing High Blood Pressure May Protect Against Dementia](https://img.passeportsante.net/1000x526/2014-03-24/i60882-prevenir-l-hypertension-pourrait-proteger-contre-la-demence.jpg)
January 19, 2010 – Preventing high blood pressure may protect against dementia associated with aging. This is indicated by the results of an observational study1 conducted by American researchers who followed 1,424 women going through menopause.
The authors compared the blood pressure data of the participants at the start of the study and the results of a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan conducted 8 years later to observe the condition. of the white matter of their brain.
Results show women with baseline systolic blood pressure of 140 mm Hg or greater2 had more white matter lesions at the end of the study than those with near normal pressure (120 mm Hg). However, many data indicate that these white matter lesions are associated with an increased risk of suffering from dementia.
It appears that even a moderate rise in blood pressure causes damage to the blood capillaries responsible for supplying the brain, leading to damage to the white matter.
According to the researchers, these findings indicate that interventions aimed at preventing hypertension throughout life may help prevent dementia associated with aging, or at least delay its onset. Interventions like weight loss, physical activity or other lifestyle changes are as important as antihypertensive medication for controlling blood pressure, they point out.
The authors stress that it is all the more important to intervene early in the prevention of hypertension as the latter is also associated with an increased risk of suffering from cardiovascular disorders, in particular stroke. The evidence currently available indicates that preventing hypertension is probably the most effective intervention known to guard against dementia, they note.
Pierre Lefrançois – PasseportSanté.net
1. Kuller LH, Margolis KL, et al. The Women’s Health Initiative Memory Study Research Group. Relationship of Hypertension, Blood Pressure, and Blood Pressure Control With White Matter Abnormalities in the Women’s Health Initiative Memory Study (WHIMS) â € ”MRI Trial. J Clin Hypertens, December 2009, United States. www3.interscience.wiley.com
2. Millimeters of mercury column.