A large study analising the medical data of thousands of people suggests that dementia incidence is lower among those who take blood pressure medication | via Medical News Today
A large new study has found a link between taking various kinds of blood pressure-lowering drugs and a lower risk of dementia among older adults, adding to the discussion around the link between cognitive decline and high blood pressure.
In their study the researchers analised data from 12,405 people, aged 60 or over, with dementia who attended one of 739 general practices in Germany as patients in 2013–2017. The team had access to all of these participants’ blood pressure values, as well as their medication records. This data was compared with those of 12,405 participants without dementia who had visited a general practice in the same time period.
The team found that those who took certain antihypertensive drugs — including beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, and angiotensin II receptor blockers — seemed to have a lower risk of dementia.
Moreover, among those who took calcium channel blockers — which are another type of blood pressure drug — for a longer period of time, the incidence of dementia also decreased.
Full story at Medical News Today
Full reference: Bohlken, Jensa; Jacob, Louisb; Kostev, Karelc | The Relationship Between the Use of Antihypertensive Drugs and the Incidence of Dementia in General Practices in Germany | Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease | Published: 20 May 2019