Sydney - Relieving high blood pressure could halve the
number of Alzheimer's patients, an Australian researcher said
recently.
High blood pressure or hypertension increases the risk of heart
attacks but Sydney's Michael Valenzuela said sufferers also had a
higher risk of developing dementia later in life.
'I think there is a fundamental link between Alzheimer's and
cardio-vascular disease,' the University of New South Wales academic
said. 'High blood pressure reduces blood flow to the memory part of
the brain. Any kind of reduction of blood flow is going to be
negative for brain cells. They are not going to have enough nutrients
or ability to get rid of waste products.'
He said reduced blood flow could cause breakages in the tiny blood
vessels in the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for
memory, leading to 'micro-bleeding that may kick off the Alzheimer's
process.'
Valenzuela reviewed 10 years of dementia-related research.
One study involved a trial of more than 4,500 people over 60 years
who had high blood pressure. The incidence of Alzheimer's in later
life was halved among those on anti-hypertensive drugs.
'I believe that addressing blood pressure in the community in a
more focused way, in a more effective way, I'd expect that dementia
rates would correspondingly fall,' he said.
USA
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