Association Between Hypertension, Menopause, and Cognition in Women

The aim of this study was to investigate the cognitive state in women and its relation to menopause and hypertension (HTN). The authors included 1034 women aged 47.13±15.71 years. The prevalence of HTN was 47.1%, with 67.8% of patients treated and 48.6% controlled. Cognitive impairment was higher among hypertensive menopausal (mini-Boston Naming Test: 7.4±3.1 vs 8.5±2.4, P<.001; Clock-Drawing Test: 5.2±2 vs 5.6±1.6, P<.01). Using logistic regression adjusted by age and education level, statistical differences were found in the results from the mini-Boston Naming Test between menopausal hypertensive vs menopausal normotensive women (odds ratio, 1.48; 95% confidence interval, 1.06-2.07; P=.021), and no difference between nonmenopausal hypertensive vs menopausal normotensive women (odds ratio, 0.89; 95% confidence interval, 0.51-1.57; P=.697). The P interaction between both groups was significant (P=.038). The possibility of alteration in cortical functions in menopausal hypertensive woman showed a relative increment of 48% (P=.021). The association between HTN and menopause increases the possibility of compromising the semantic memory by 50%.