title: Homocysteine, grey matter and cognitive function in adults with cardiovascular disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Elevated total plasma homocysteine (tHcy) has been associated with cognitive impairment, vascular disease and brain atrophy.
  
  
  METHODS
  We investigated 150 volunteers to determine if the association between high tHcy and cerebral grey matter volume and cognitive function is independent of cardiovascular disease.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants with high tHcy (≥15 µmol/L) showed a widespread relative loss of grey matter compared with people with normal tHcy, although differences between the groups were minimal once the analyses were adjusted for age, gender, diabetes, hypertension, smoking and prevalent cardiovascular disease. Individuals with high tHcy had worse cognitive scores across a range of domains and less total grey matter volume, although these differences were not significant in the adjusted models.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that the association between high tHcy and loss of cerebral grey matter volume and decline in cognitive function is largely explained by increasing age and cardiovascular diseases and indicate that the relationship is not causal.
authors.affiliation: Western Australian Centre for Health & Ageing, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. andrew.ford@uwa.edu.au
authors.forename: Andrew H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Ford
authors.forename: Griselda J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Garrido
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Beer
authors.forename: Nicola T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Lautenschlager
authors.forename: Leonard
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Arnolda
authors.forename: Leon
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Flicker
authors.forename: Osvaldo P
authors.initials: OP
authors.lastname: Almeida
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001284:Atrophy / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006710:Homocysteine / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D006710:Homocysteine