Differences in the association between high blood pressure and cognitive functioning among the general Japanese population aged 70 and 80 years: The SONIC study

Abstract

High blood pressure in middle age (up to 64 years) has been proposed as a predictive indicator of dementia. However, the association between hypertension and the cognitive functioning is controversial in older age groups. The aim of this study was to investigate this association in 70-80-year-old participants in the Japanese study of Septuagenarians, Octogenarians and Nonagenarians Investigation with Centenarians (SONIC). Participants aged 70 (±1) and 80 (±1) years (n=1000 and 973, respectively) were randomly recruited from the general population in Japan. Cognitive functioning was measured by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Blood pressure and other medical and social variables were analyzed by multiple regression analyses. High systolic blood pressure (SBP) was significantly correlated with a reduced cognitive functioning only in participants aged 70 years. Additionally, this correlation became more marked in participants with uncontrolled blood pressure at age 70 years. In contrast, SBP was not significantly correlated with the cognitive functioning at age 80 years. Nutritional status indicators such as serum albumin and frequency of going outdoors were significantly associated with cognitive functioning at age 80 years. Our findings indicate that high SBP has a significant role in cognitive functioning at age 70 years; however, blood pressure is less important as a risk factor for cognitive decline at age 80 years.

Association between dietary patterns and cognitive function among 70-year-old Japanese elderly: a cross-sectional analysis of the SONIC study

“…Each cohort consisted of a total of 1000 participants living independently who had been randomly selected through the local resident registry from four areas in Japan: Itami City, Hyogo (Western-urban); Asago City, Hyogo (Western-rural); Itabashi Ward, Tokyo (Eastern-urban); and Nishitama County, Tokyo (Eastern-rural). A detailed description of the rationale, study design, and protocol has been published elsewhere [ 14 – 16 ].…”

“…Median Pearson correlation coefficients with the DR for energy-adjusted intakes of the 42 nutrients were 0.56 (range: 0.41–0.63) in men and 0.54 (range: 0.45–061) in women [ 18 ]. A more detailed description of the methods used to calculate dietary intakes and the validity of the BDHQ has been published previously [ 15 , 16 ].…”

Relative validity of brief-type self-administered diet history questionnaire among very old Japanese aged 80 years or older

“…The value for heart disease presented was from coronary heart disease. § Values of SONIC presented are those for the participants aged 80 years from Ryuno et al . (19) . Age range is shown. …”

“…Values of SONIC presented are those for the participants aged 80 years from Ryuno et al . (19) . Age range is shown.…”

Association of Sympathovagal Imbalance with Cognitive Deficit, Insulin Resistance and Oxidative Stress in Newly Diagnosed Hypertension

“…[5] Hypertension, an established risk factor for cognitive deficit accounts for the third cause of death, out of one in eight deaths worldwide. [6,7] Cognitive deficit is defined as an average cognitive performance at around the thirty-fifth to forty-fifth percentiles of normative data affecting one or multiple domains of cognition, though the cut-off to detect cognitive deficit is at fifth to tenth percentile. [8] Though there are various sophisticated techniques for determining cognitive impairment, recently the event related potential recorded in the form of positive wave at 300ms (P300) has been considered as a better tool for assessing cognitive deficit.…”