Because evidence suggests that you may then be at risk for forgetting just about everything.
Hypertension is a known risk factor for dementia and is associated with some of the same gummed-up brain changes also found in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Researchers evaluated the beleaguered brains of hypertensives and AD patients using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (don't ask, I have no idea). When compared to normal subjects, both those with dementia and the tension-filled had the same abnormalities in their brain composition. Furthermore, hypertension contributes to the changes in small blood vessels in the brain that lead to vascular dementia, another degenerative brain disease which can be indistinguishable from AD.
Research has shown that successful treatment of hypertension can decrease the risk of memory loss. A study of nearly 2,000 aging souls in Indiana over five years confirmed that the use of anti-hypertensive medication reduced the risk of dementia by 38%. Another trial known as the Systolic Hypertension in Europe (Syst-Eur) study was originally designed to investigate the protective effects of blood pressure treatment on risk of stroke. This portion of the trial was terminated early because the benefits of intervention were so clear with respect to decreasing incidence of stroke that researchers were compelled to offer the active-treatment to all participants. After that point, nearly 3,000 subjects, all now on medication, were followed for the occurrence of dementia. Blood pressure lowering therapy with a specific class of medications called dihydropyridines--Norvasc (amlodopine) and Plendil) reduced the incidence of such memory loss by 55%!
Syst-Eur investigators note that these drugs (also known as calcium channel blockers) seem to provide better protection against stroke compared to diuretics (Dyazide, HCTZ, Lasix) and beta-blockers (Toprol, atenolol, and others), and this advantage may also prevail in dementia prevention. Their results suggest that treating 1,000 hypertensive patients for five years with such meds can prevent 20 cases of dementia.
Showing posts with label Hypertension. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hypertension. Show all posts
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Monday, March 3, 2008
Is frustration frying your brain?
When your teenager awakens in the morning with a fully developed case of rage, do you go there with him, or do you smile benignly at the little darling and turn the other cheek? A study out of Maryland* suggests that your response may significantly influence your risk for a stroke.
I'll bet these Baltimore investigators had a field day with this one. They invited 67 "older subjects" down to the lab for an afternoon of testing. The unsuspecting seniors (ages 55 to 81) were subjected to "repeated interruptions of statements and harassment during mental arithmetic tests," while their vital signs were monitored as the aggravation wore on.
The hot reactors in the group raised their blood pressures along with their ire. These simmering subjects were found to have a significantly increased number of unsuspected little infarcts on subsequent MRI brain scanning (see 'The White Matter Matter' below). In other words, their explosive reactions to life's little unpleasantries had taken a permanent toll on the health of their brains.
Lead investigator Dr. Shari Waldstein concluded, "If these findings are replicated, it may be worthwhile to investigate whether treatment of stress-induced blood pressure responses -- in addition to the resting blood pressure -- can reduce cerebrovascular risk."
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*Waldstein, SR, et al. Stroke. 2004 Jun;35(6):1294-8.
I'll bet these Baltimore investigators had a field day with this one. They invited 67 "older subjects" down to the lab for an afternoon of testing. The unsuspecting seniors (ages 55 to 81) were subjected to "repeated interruptions of statements and harassment during mental arithmetic tests," while their vital signs were monitored as the aggravation wore on.
The hot reactors in the group raised their blood pressures along with their ire. These simmering subjects were found to have a significantly increased number of unsuspected little infarcts on subsequent MRI brain scanning (see 'The White Matter Matter' below). In other words, their explosive reactions to life's little unpleasantries had taken a permanent toll on the health of their brains.
Lead investigator Dr. Shari Waldstein concluded, "If these findings are replicated, it may be worthwhile to investigate whether treatment of stress-induced blood pressure responses -- in addition to the resting blood pressure -- can reduce cerebrovascular risk."
_____
*Waldstein, SR, et al. Stroke. 2004 Jun;35(6):1294-8.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
The white matter matter
The brain is divided into two main regions: the superficial gray matter, and the white matter below. Gray matter is the surface control center; the nerve cell bodies in this layer connect to one another via long extensions called axons. These electrical connectors travel through the white matter, so-named because a white, fatty material called myelin surrounds and insulates the axons, one from another.
We have long known that damage to the gray area through stroke or injury results in devastating paralysis and loss of physical functions such as speech. Through the fancy radiological technique of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), we now know that the white matter is also vulnerable to a patchy sort of damage which, over time, can have a cumulative effect on motor, speech, and thinking skills.
These damaged areas appear on MRI scanning as small bright spots within the large body of white matter. The number of these 'white matter hyperintensities' (WMH) increases with age. WMHs have also been linked to a history of hypertension, migraine, and depression. Microscopic studies done on brains whose owners no longer need them confirm that these areas represent ischemic damage due to a loss of blood supply and fresh oxygen to the tissue. Many bright spots in the brain do not foreshadow a bright future for cognitive functioning. The following two studies have aided researchers in understanding the significance of such MRI findings.
Maryland researchers at Johns Hopkins University scanned the aging brains of 3600 individuals and graded the white matter abnormalities from 0 (no white matter matters to speak of) to 9 (a huge load of stressed-out white matter). Over the next five years, they followed the group for the occurrence of stroke. The higher the grade, the more the brains failed to age in good style. Those whose white matter was heavily spotted and bright (grade 5 or higher) had triple the stroke incidence compared to those whose white matter was scarcely spotted at all.
In 1932, public health authorities in Scotland administered the "Scottish Mental Survey" to all the resident 11 year olds. In 1999, scientists at the University of Edinburgh rounded up a bevy of 78 year olds and compared their current cognitive ability to their pre-teen mental testing as well as their current brain MRI scans.* The scientists found that the amount of white-matter lesions in their subjects' aging Scottish noggins was a better marker for present mental functioning than the early-age IQ scores. Furthermore, the impact of the white matter changes was independent of youthful mental ability.
Don't take it's 'just age' for an answer if bright spots are spotted on your MRI scan. Get cardiovascular risk factors such as elevated blood pressure, cigarette use, elevated blood sugar, and high cholesterol out of your life.
_____
*Leaper, SA et al. Radiology. 2001 Oct;221(1):51-5.Click here to read
We have long known that damage to the gray area through stroke or injury results in devastating paralysis and loss of physical functions such as speech. Through the fancy radiological technique of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), we now know that the white matter is also vulnerable to a patchy sort of damage which, over time, can have a cumulative effect on motor, speech, and thinking skills.
These damaged areas appear on MRI scanning as small bright spots within the large body of white matter. The number of these 'white matter hyperintensities' (WMH) increases with age. WMHs have also been linked to a history of hypertension, migraine, and depression. Microscopic studies done on brains whose owners no longer need them confirm that these areas represent ischemic damage due to a loss of blood supply and fresh oxygen to the tissue. Many bright spots in the brain do not foreshadow a bright future for cognitive functioning. The following two studies have aided researchers in understanding the significance of such MRI findings.
Maryland researchers at Johns Hopkins University scanned the aging brains of 3600 individuals and graded the white matter abnormalities from 0 (no white matter matters to speak of) to 9 (a huge load of stressed-out white matter). Over the next five years, they followed the group for the occurrence of stroke. The higher the grade, the more the brains failed to age in good style. Those whose white matter was heavily spotted and bright (grade 5 or higher) had triple the stroke incidence compared to those whose white matter was scarcely spotted at all.
In 1932, public health authorities in Scotland administered the "Scottish Mental Survey" to all the resident 11 year olds. In 1999, scientists at the University of Edinburgh rounded up a bevy of 78 year olds and compared their current cognitive ability to their pre-teen mental testing as well as their current brain MRI scans.* The scientists found that the amount of white-matter lesions in their subjects' aging Scottish noggins was a better marker for present mental functioning than the early-age IQ scores. Furthermore, the impact of the white matter changes was independent of youthful mental ability.
Don't take it's 'just age' for an answer if bright spots are spotted on your MRI scan. Get cardiovascular risk factors such as elevated blood pressure, cigarette use, elevated blood sugar, and high cholesterol out of your life.
_____
*Leaper, SA et al. Radiology. 2001 Oct;221(1):51-5.Click here to read
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