Dissecting the vascular-cognitive nexus: energetic vs. conventional hemodynamic parameters.

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Physiology
• Neuroscience
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Vascular health and blood pressure are linked to cognitive function.
• Conventional hemodynamic parameters may not fully capture this relationship.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if energetic hemodynamic parameters offer a more nuanced understanding of cognitive function compared to traditional metrics.
• To assess the association between aortic and carotid energetic hemodynamic parameters and cognitive performance.

Main Methods:

• 1858 participants underwent cognitive assessment (MoCA).
• Central aortic and carotid pressure and flow waveforms were measured.
• Energetic hemodynamic parameters were calculated by integrating pressure and flow over time.

Main Results:

• Energetic hemodynamic parameters, particularly carotid mean energy and energy pulsatility index (PI), were significantly associated with MoCA scores.
• These associations were stronger than those for traditional pressure- or flow-based parameters, even after adjusting for confounders.
• Carotid mean energy positively correlated with MoCA scores, while carotid energy PI negatively correlated.

Conclusions:

• Energetic hemodynamic parameters, specifically carotid mean energy and energy PI, demonstrate a stronger association with cognitive function (MoCA scores) than conventional metrics.
• The aorto-carotid interface properties significantly influence the correlation between these hemodynamic parameters and cognitive function.