What is the relationship between hypertension and brain size?

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Abnormal blood pressure can be linked to brain shrinkage in 20- to 30-year-olds, according to a recent German study.

The study was conducted by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Cognitive and Cerebral Sciences in Germany and published their findings in the latest issue of the journal Neurology on Saturday.

To achieve the results of the study, the researchers followed 423 people, aged 28 years on average, using a brain scan MRI, in addition to reading the pressure blood.

Forty-one percent of patients had a normal blood pressure of 120/80 mmHg – the unit of blood pressure -, while 11% had a high blood pressure greater than 140/90 mmHg.

To understand what is happening in the brain, the team has monitored the white matter in the brain, which is important because it binds to different areas and serves as an infrastructure.

The researchers found that hypotensive individuals had a lower volume of gray matter in the brain regions, including the frontal and parietal lobes, as well as in the hippocampus, amygdala and mulch.

"In the past, it was thought that the damage and narrowing of the brain size badociated with high blood pressure occurred years after the stress, but our study suggests that subtle changes in brain matter in the brain may be detected in undiagnosed youth, "said Dr. Arnault Wellinger, Hit them at high pressure. "

"More research is needed to see if this could increase the risk of stroke, dementia, and other cerebrovascular diseases later in life," he said.

"This research shows that it may be necessary to treat high blood pressure or maintain low blood pressure at the youth stage to prevent silent brain changes in the brain, likely to have devastating effects such as stroke and dementia, "he said.

High blood pressure usually causes abnormalities of the white matter surrounding the brain wall, which increases cognitive deficit by six, increasing the risk of dementia.

High blood pressure causes serious health complications, including heart attacks, sore throats and strokes, kidney failure, pregnancy intoxication and blindness due to destruction of the eye tissue.