[Brain Perfusion, Cognitive Functions, and Vascular Age in Middle Aged Patients With Essential Arterial Hypertension]

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cardiology
• Radiology

Background:

• Essential arterial hypertension (EAH) is prevalent in middle-aged adults.
• Hypertension can affect cognitive function and cerebral hemodynamics.
• Vascular age is an indicator of cardiovascular risk.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate cognitive functions and cerebral blood flow (CBF) using arterial spin labeling (ASL) in untreated EAH patients.
• To explore the correlation between cognitive function, CBF, and vascular age in EAH.
• To compare these parameters between EAH patients and healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• Seventy-three subjects (33 EAH, 40 controls) aged 40-59 years were assessed.
• Neuropsychological tests included MoCA, Trail Making, Stroop, verbal fluency, and memory tasks.
• Brain MRI with ASL was performed, and vascular age was calculated using Framingham and SCORE scales.

Main Results:

• EAH patients exhibited lower phonemic verbal fluency and MoCA scores compared to controls.
• White matter hyperintensities (WMH) were significantly more common in EAH patients (51.5%) than controls (7.5%).
• Reduced CBF was observed in the frontal lobes of EAH patients compared to controls.

Conclusions:

• Untreated EAH is associated with cognitive deficits and reduced frontal lobe CBF.
• Hypertension significantly impacts brain structure (WMH) and function in middle-aged individuals.
• These findings suggest a link between EAH, cognitive decline, altered cerebral perfusion, and vascular age.