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The Spatial Memory Game: Testing the Relationship Between Spatial Language, Object Knowledge, and Spatial Cognition
Published on: February 19, 2018
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Spatial QRS-T Angle and Cognitive Decline in Older Subjects
Simin Mahinrad1,2, Ian Ferguson3, Peter W Macfarlane4
1Department of Internal Medicine, Gerontology and Geriatrics Section, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Journal of Alzheimer'S Disease : JAD
|December 26, 2018
Summary
A wide spatial QRS-T angle on an ECG, indicating abnormal heart electrical activity, is linked to faster cognitive decline in older adults. This association persists even when accounting for cardiovascular risk factors and other ECG abnormalities.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Neurology
- Gerontology
Background:
- A wide spatial QRS-T angle on an electrocardiogram (ECG) signifies ventricular electrical heterogeneity and is associated with cardiovascular events.
- Emerging research suggests a connection between cardiac dysfunction and future cognitive impairment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between the spatial QRS-T angle and cognitive decline in elderly individuals at high cardiovascular risk.
- To determine if a non-traditional ECG marker predicts future cognitive impairment.
Main Methods:
- The study included 4,172 participants (mean age 75.2 years) from the PROSPER cohort, free of arrhythmias.
- Spatial QRS-T angle was measured from baseline ECGs. Cognitive function was assessed using four tests and reassessed over a mean follow-up of 3.2 years.
- Linear mixed models were used to analyze annual cognitive score changes in relation to spatial QRS-T angle.
Main Results:
- Wider spatial QRS-T angles correlated with steeper declines in the letter-digit coding test, immediate picture-word learning, and delayed picture-word learning.
- These associations remained significant after adjusting for arrhythmias, cardiovascular risk factors, comorbidities, medications, cardiovascular events, and other ECG abnormalities.
Conclusions:
- Abnormal cardiac electrical activity, indicated by a wide spatial QRS-T angle, is associated with accelerated cognitive decline.
- This suggests a link between pre-clinical cardiac pathology, identified by a non-traditional ECG measure, and future cognitive decline, independent of traditional cardiovascular factors.
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