Irregular heartbeat linked to higher risk of dementia and faster cognitive decline



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Atrial fibrillation was associated with an increased risk of dementia and a faster cognitive decline, according to recently published results in Neurology.

"More and more evidence suggests that [atrial fibrillation] can play an important role in cognitive dysfunction ", Mozhu Ding, MSc, from the Swedish Center for Research on Aging and his colleagues wrote.

"However, up to now, there is only one retrospective study based on a registry conducted in Sweden that suggests a risk of dementia associated with anticoagulant therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation." . Evidence regarding the cognitive benefits of antithrombotic drugs from population-based longitudinal studies is still lacking. "

The researchers performed assessments of atrial fibrillation and mini-mental status exams on 2,685 patients (mean age: 73.1 years). Of these, 243 had atrial fibrillation initially. During a nine-year follow-up period, 279 developed atrial fibrillation and 399 a dementia. Ding and colleagues found that as a variable over time, atrial fibrillation was significantly related to an increased risk of vascular and mixed dementia (HR = 1.88, 95% CI, 1.09-3). , 23), all-cause dementia (HR = 1.4; 95% CI, 1.11-1.77) and a faster decline in the annual mini-mental state examination (beta coefficient = -0 , 24, 95% CI, -0.31 to -0.16). The use of anticoagulants was associated with a 60% reduced risk of dementia (HR = 0.4, 95% CI, 0.18-0.92) in patients with incident or prevalent fibrillation.

Man having heartbeat checked

Atrial fibrillation was associated with an increased risk of dementia and a faster cognitive decline, according to recently published results in Neurology.

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"Assuming that there is a causal relationship between the use of anticoagulants and the reduced risk of dementia, we estimated that about 54% of dementia cases would have been hypothetically avoided." if all people with atrial fibrillation had taken diluent blood, "co-authored the study Chengxuan Qiu, PhD, the Karolinska Institute and the Stockholm University in Sweden, said in a press release. "Additional efforts must be made to increase the use of blood thinning agents in elderly people with atrial fibrillation." – by Janel Miller

Disclosures:
Ding reports receiving a scholarship from the China Scholarship Council (201507930005) and grants from Konung Gustaf V: Drottning Victorias Frimurarestiftelse, Lindh'es Foundation (LA2015-0440), Gamla Tj¨anarinnor (2017-00519), and National School of Higher Education. aging and health. Qiu announces support for the Swedish Council for Health, Professional Life and Welfare Research (2014-01382) and the Swedish Research Council (2015-02531 and 2017-05819). Please consult the study for the relevant financial information of all other authors.

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