title: Effects of chronic hypertension on cognitive functioning.
abstract: Arterial hypertension and blood pressure level are associated with modestly accelerated cognitive decline over the adult life span and with moderately increased risk of poor cognitive performance at all ages. Correlations between white matter lesions in brain and elevated blood pressure provide indirect evidence that structural and functional changes in brain over time may lead to lowered of cognitive functioning when blood pressure control is poor or lacking. Preventive methods designed to lower population blood pressure, early detection, and aggressive treatment of hypertension are important to prevent accelerated cognitive decline in the individual and to preserve cognitive ability in the population. Some evidence suggests that poorly controlled hypertension may predispose to the dementias, but more work is needed to ascertain this.
authors.affiliation: University of Maine, USA.
authors.forename: M F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Elias
mesh_terms: D002908:Chronic Disease; D003071:Cognition; D003704:Dementia / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies