Epidemiology of hypertension and dementia

Yutaka Kiyohara

Department of Environmental Medicine, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University

　　The epidemiological evidence in the world suggests that in the elderly, hypertension does not affect the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD), and the association between hypertension and the risk of vascular dementia (VaD) remains inconclusive.　The findings of a cohort study of aged people in the town of Hisayama demonstrated a clear association of higher blood pressure levels with a greater risk of the development of VaD, whereas such association was not observed for AD.　There has not been enough epidemiological evidence indicating the effects of midlife blood pressure on the development of dementia in late life.　A meta-analysis of intervention studies showed a modest preventive effect of antihypertensive treatment on the risk of dementia.

Address correspondence to Dr. Yutaka Kiyohara, Department of Environmental Medicine, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University(3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka City 812-8582, Japan)