Whether the treatment of patients with hypertension who are 80 years of age or older is beneficial is unclear. It has been suggested that antihypertensive therapy may reduce the risk of stroke, despite possibly increasing the risk of death. We randomly assigned 3845 patients from Europe, China, Australasia, and Tunisia who were 80 years of age or older and had a sustained systolic blood pressure of 160 mm Hg or more to receive either the diuretic indapamide (sustained release, 1.5 mg) or matching placebo. The angiotensin-converting–enzyme inhibitor perindopril (2 or 4 mg), or matching placebo, was added if necessary to achieve the target blood pressure of 150/80 mm Hg. The primary end point was fatal or nonfatal stroke. The active-treatment group (1933 patients) and the placebo group (1912 patients) were well matched (mean age, 83.6 years; mean blood pressure while sitting, 173.0/90.8 mm Hg); 11.8% had a history of cardiovascular disease. Median follow-up was 1.8 years. At 2 years, the mean blood pressure while sitting was 15.0/6.1 mm Hg lower in the active-treatment group than in the placebo group. In an intention-to-treat analysis, active treatment was associated with a 30% reduction in the rate of fatal or nonfatal stroke (95% confidence interval [CI], −1 to 51; P=0.06), a 39% reduction in the rate of death from stroke (95% CI, 1 to 62; P=0.05), a 21% reduction in the rate of death from any cause (95% CI, 4 to 35; P=0.02), a 23% reduction in the rate of death from cardiovascular causes (95% CI, −1 to 40; P=0.06), and a 64% reduction in the rate of heart failure (95% CI, 42 to 78; P<0.001). Fewer serious adverse events were reported in the active-treatment group (358, vs. 448 in the placebo group; P=0.001). The results provide evidence that antihypertensive treatment with indapamide (sustained release), with or without perindopril, in persons 80 years of age or older is beneficial. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00122811.)

Ageing causes changes to the brain size, vasculature, and cognition. The brain shrinks with increasing age and there are changes at all levels from molecules to morphology. Incidence of stroke, white matter lesions, and dementia also rise with age, as does level of memory impairment and there are changes in levels of neurotransmitters and hormones. Protective factors that reduce cardiovascular risk, namely regular exercise, a healthy diet, and low to moderate alcohol intake, seem to aid the ageing brain as does increased cognitive effort in the form of education or occupational attainment. A healthy life both physically and mentally may be the best defence against the changes of an ageing brain. Additional measures to prevent cardiovascular disease may also be important.

OBJECTIVE Type 2 diabetes confers a greater excess risk of cardiovascular disease in women than in men. Diabetes is also a risk factor for dementia, but whether the association is similar in women and men remains unknown. We performed a meta-analysis of unpublished data to estimate the sex-specific relationship between women and men with diabetes with incident dementia. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A systematic search identified studies published prior to November 2014 that had reported on the prospective association between diabetes and dementia. Study authors contributed unpublished sex-specific relative risks (RRs) and 95% CIs on the association between diabetes and all dementia and its subtypes. Sex-specific RRs and the women-to-men ratio of RRs (RRRs) were pooled using random-effects meta-analyses. RESULTS Study-level data from 14 studies, 2,310,330 individuals, and 102,174 dementia case patients were included. In multiple-adjusted analyses, diabetes was associated with a 60% increased risk of any dementia in both sexes (women: pooled RR 1.62 [95% CI 1.45–1.80]; men: pooled RR 1.58 [95% CI 1.38–1.81]). The diabetes-associated RRs for vascular dementia were 2.34 (95% CI 1.86–2.94) in women and 1.73 (95% CI 1.61–1.85) in men, and for nonvascular dementia the RRs were 1.53 (95% CI 1.35–1.73) in women and 1.49 (95% CI 1.31–1.69) in men. Overall, women with diabetes had a 19% greater risk for the development of vascular dementia than men (multiple-adjusted RRR 1.19 [95% CI 1.08–1.30]; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Individuals with type 2 diabetes are at ∼60% greater risk for the development of dementia compared with those without diabetes. For vascular dementia, but not for nonvascular dementia, the additional risk is greater in women.

Observational epidemiological studies have shown a positive association between hypertension and risk of incident dementia; however, the effects of antihypertensive therapy on cognitive function in controlled trials have been conflicting, and meta-analyses of the trials have not provided clear evidence of whether antihypertensive treatment reduces dementia incidence. The Hypertension in the Very Elderly trial (HYVET) was designed to assess the risks and benefits of treatment of hypertension in elderly patients and included an assessment of cognitive function. Patients with hypertension (systolic pressure 160-200 mm Hg; diastolic pressure <110 mm Hg) who were aged 80 years or older were enrolled in this double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Participants were randomly assigned to receive 1.5 mg slow release indapamide, with the option of 2-4 mg perindopril, or placebo. The target systolic blood pressure was 150 mm Hg; the target diastolic blood pressure was 80 mm Hg. Participants had no clinical diagnosis of dementia at baseline, and cognitive function was assessed at baseline and annually with the mini-mental state examination (MMSE). Possible cases of incident dementia (a fall in the MMSE score to <24 points or a drop of three points in 1 year) were assessed by standard diagnostic criteria and expert review. The trial was stopped in 2007 at the second interim analysis after treatment resulted in a reduction in stroke and total mortality. Analysis was by intention to treat. The trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT00122811. 3336 HYVET participants had at least one follow-up assessment (mean 2.2 years) and were included: 1687 participants were randomly assigned to the treatment group and 1649 to the placebo group. Only five reports of adverse effects were attributed to the medication: three in the placebo group and two in the treatment group. The mean decrease in systolic blood pressure between the treatment and placebo groups at 2 years was systolic -15 mm Hg, p<0.0001; and diastolic -5.9 mm Hg, p<0.0001. There were 263 incident cases of dementia. The rates of incident dementia were 38 per 1000 patient-years in the placebo group and 33 per 1000 patient-years in the treatment group. There was no significant difference between treatment and placebo groups (hazard ratio [HR] 0.86, 95% CI 0.67-1.09); however, when these data were combined in a meta-analysis with other placebo-controlled trials of antihypertensive treatment, the combined risk ratio favoured treatment (HR 0.87, 0.76-1.00, p=0.045). Antihypertensive treatment in elderly patients does not statistically reduce incidence of dementia. This negative finding might have been due to the short follow-up, owing to the early termination of the trial, or the modest effect of treatment. Nevertheless, the HYVET findings, when included in a meta-analysis, might support antihypertensive treatment to reduce incident dementia.

Background: Both air pollution and dementia are current and growing global issues. There are plausible links between exposure to specific air pollutants and dementia. Objective: To systematically review the evidence base with respect to the relationship between air pollution and later cognitive decline and dementia. Methods: Medline, Embase, and PsychINFO ^® were searched from their inception to September 2018, for publications reporting on longitudinal studies of exposure to air pollution and incident dementia or cognitive decline in adults. Studies reporting on exposure to tobacco smoke including passive smoking or on occupational exposure to pollutants were excluded. Using standard Cochrane methodology, two readers identified relevant abstracts, read full text publications, and extracted data into structured tables from relevant papers, as defined by inclusion and exclusion criteria. Papers were also assessed for validity. CRD42018094299 Results: From 3,720 records, 13 papers were found to be relevant, with studies from the USA, Canada, Taiwan, Sweden, and the UK. Study follow-up ranged from one to 15 years. Pollutants examined included particulate matter ≤2.5 μ (PM _2.5 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO ₂ ), nitrous oxides (NO _x ), carbon monoxide (CO), and ozone. Studies varied in their methodology, population selection, assessment of exposure to pollution, and method of cognitive testing. Greater exposure to PM _2.5 , NO ₂ /NO _x , and CO were all associated with increased risk of dementia. The evidence for air pollutant exposure and cognitive decline was more equivocal. Conclusion: Evidence is emerging that greater exposure to airborne pollutants is associated with increased risk of dementia.

Scope: it has been suggested that overweight/obesity as a risk factor for incident dementia differs between mid-life and later life. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of the up-to-date current literature to assess this.