Diabetes, Hypertension, and the Risk of Dementia

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and hypertension (HTN) are well-known modifiable risk factors for dementia, but their intricate attributes accounting for dementia development has not been clearly delineated.

We conducted this study to investigate and compare the effects of T2D and HTN on dementia risk.

We screened data of matched pairs of patients with T2D or HTN between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2017 from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database. Fine and Gray's subdistribution hazard models were used for calculating the risk of dementia.

Patients with T2D and subsequent HTN were associated with significantly higher risks of all-cause dementia (aHR 1.51, 95% CI 1.25-1.83) and vascular dementia (aHR 2.30, 95% CI 1.71-3.13) compared with those without subsequent HTN. Patients with HTN and subsequent T2D were associated with significantly higher risks of all-cause dementia (aHR 1.15, 95% CI 1.08-1.21), vascular dementia (aHR 1.25, 95% CI 1.62-1.34), and other dementia (aHR 1.31, 95% CI 1.03-1.66) compared with those without subsequent HTN. The subgroups of male and female patients, age of 50-69 and 70-90 years with subsequent comorbidity were associated with significantly higher risks of all-cause dementia and vascular dementia than those without subsequent comorbidity.

This nationwide cohort study demonstrated that patients with T2D and subsequent HTN had association with higher risks of all-cause dementia and vascular dementia, and those with HTN and subsequent T2D were associated with higher risks of all-cause dementia, vascular dementia, and other dementia.