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Published on: May 17, 2024

[The cerebroprotective effects of Mexidol in patients with hypertension]

S A Dreshina1, S N Yanishevsky1

  • 1Almazov National Medical Research Center, St. Petersburg, Russia.

Zhurnal Nevrologii I Psikhiatrii Imeni S.S. Korsakova
|May 14, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Hypertension contributes to brain damage through mechanisms like oxidative stress. Sequential therapy with ethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinate (Mexidol) may help prevent cognitive impairment in hypertensive patients.

Area of Science:

  • Neurology
  • Cardiology
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Hypertension is a major global cause of cardiovascular disease and a significant modifiable risk factor for chronic brain damage.
  • Key mechanisms linking hypertension to brain injury include cerebral microangiopathy, endothelial dysfunction, impaired cerebral blood flow autoregulation, and oxidative stress.
  • These factors contribute to chronic cerebral ischemia and cognitive impairment.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the impact of oxidative stress and metabolic disturbances on hypertensive brain injury.
  • To examine current neuroprotective therapy approaches for hypertensive brain damage.
  • To evaluate the efficacy of ethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinate (Mexidol) in preventing cognitive impairment progression in hypertensive patients.

Main Methods:

  • Review of published experimental and clinical studies on oxidative stress, metabolic disturbances, and hypertensive brain injury.
  • Analysis of data on neuroprotective therapies, with a focus on ethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinate (Mexidol).
  • Inclusion of results from the randomized placebo-controlled MEMO trial and its subgroup analysis of hypertensive patients.

Main Results:

  • Oxidative stress and metabolic disturbances are central to the development of chronic cerebral ischemia and cognitive impairment in hypertension.
  • Ethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinate (Mexidol) demonstrates a multimodal mechanism of action with potential neuroprotective benefits.
  • The MEMO trial and its analyses suggest that sequential Mexidol therapy can aid in preventing cognitive impairment progression in hypertensive individuals.

Conclusions:

  • Hypertensive brain injury is significantly influenced by oxidative stress and metabolic disturbances.
  • Ethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinate (Mexidol) presents a promising neuroprotective agent for managing hypertensive brain damage.
  • Sequential therapy with Mexidol is supported by evidence for preventing cognitive decline in patients with hypertension.

Keywords:
Mexidolarterial hypertensioncognitive impairmentethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinateneuroprotection

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