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Published on: April 23, 2021
Associations of Blood Pressure Parameters with Cognitive Decline and Dementia: A Systematic Review of Reviews
Sultana Shajahan1, Megan Heffernan1, Katie Harris1
1The George Institute for Global Health, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Background:
Evidence syntheses on the associations between BP parameters and cognitive decline and/or dementia have taken different methodological approaches and targeted different BP parameters and outcomes. The aim of this umbrella review was to provide a high-level synthesis of published systematic reviews with meta-analyses on these associations.
Methods:
PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, and Cochrane were searched up to April 2025 for eligible reviews. Risk of bias was assessed using the AMSTAR-2 tool, and overlap of constituent studies between reviews was explored.
Results:
Among 31 included reviews, 8 reported positive associations between higher BP and greater incidence of cognitive decline or dementia, 5 drew neutral conclusions, and 1 reported an inverse relationship. Greater mid-life BP was associated with greater risk of all-cause dementia, whereas late-life hypertension might have a mixed or overall neutral association. Three reviews reported associations between higher BP variability and all-cause dementia, and 2 for cognitive decline. Reviews also reported associations between higher pulse wave velocity and orthostatic hypotension and poorer outcomes. No reviews examined PP, mean-arterial pressure, or cumulative BP load. Most reviews were of low quality, with considerable heterogeneity in BP parameter definitions and outcome criteria. Overlap of constituent studies for each BP parameter was low.
Conclusions:
In addition to high BP, incorporating variability, pulse wave velocity and orthostatic hypertension into risk assessments of cognitive decline or dementia and adopting standardized definitions for BP parameters and cognitive outcomes may improve comparability across future studies and strengthen clinical guidance.
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