Trajectory of Cognitive Function After Incident Heart Failure.

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Neurology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• The impact of incident heart failure (HF) on cognitive function remains incompletely understood.
• Existing research has not fully accounted for pre-HF cognitive trajectories or other cognitive determinants.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the association between incident heart failure (HF) diagnosis and subsequent cognitive changes.
• To evaluate cognitive trajectories after HF, controlling for pre-existing cognitive status and participant characteristics.

Main Methods:

• A pooled cohort study utilizing data from 6 US population-based studies (1971-2019).
• Linear mixed-effects models were employed to estimate cognitive change rates post-HF diagnosis.
• Global cognition, executive function, and memory were assessed as primary and secondary outcomes.

Main Results:

• Incident heart failure (HF) diagnosis was associated with an initial decrease in global cognition (-1.1 points) and executive function (-0.6 points).
• Participants with HF showed accelerated and sustained declines in global cognition (-0.1 points/year) and executive function (-0.2 points/year).
• Memory decline showed a similar trend but did not reach statistical significance.

Conclusions:

• Incident heart failure (HF) diagnosis is linked to significant initial reductions in global cognition and executive function.
• Cognitive function, particularly global cognition and executive function, experiences faster and persistent declines following an HF diagnosis.
• These findings highlight the substantial cognitive impact of heart failure.