Risk for Alzheimer Dementia Lower With Treated Versus Untreated HTN

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 14, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Individuals with treated hypertension have a reduced risk for Alzheimer dementia (AD) compared with those with untreated hypertension, according to research published online Aug. 14 in Neurology.

Matthew J. Lennon, M.D., from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, and colleagues examined whether previous hypertension or antihypertensive use modifies AD or non-AD (all-cause dementia) risk in late life in an individual participant data meta-analysis that included community-based longitudinal studies of aging. The risks for developing AD and non-AD were examined as the main outcomes, while the main exposures were hypertension history/antihypertensive use and baseline systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP). The analysis included 31,250 participants (mean baseline age, 72 years) from 14 nations.

The researchers found that compared with healthy controls and those with treated hypertension, participants with untreated hypertension had a significantly increased risk for AD (hazard ratios, 1.36 and 1.42, respectively). Both those with treated and untreated hypertension had greater non-AD risk compared with healthy controls (hazard ratios, 1.29 and 1.69, respectively), with no difference seen between the treated and untreated groups. In an analysis restricted to those with five-year follow-up, baseline BP had a significant U-shaped relationship with non-AD risk, but there were no other relationships seen between baseline BP and AD or non-AD risk.

"Throughout late life those with treated hypertension had a lower risk of AD compared with those with untreated hypertension, suggesting that antihypertensive use should be part of any AD prevention strategy even in late life," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

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