What did they find? Among these apparently healthy older adults, those who scored lower on verbal and memory tests had more strokes than those who had better memory and verbal fluency on testing. In fact, adults who scored in the bottom 20% on the memory test had a nine times greater risk of stroke compared to the highest scorers. The higher stroke risk persisted even after researchers controlled for factors such as educational level, race and sex.
A person can have build-up of plaque in their arteries for years before a portion of it breaks off and blocks blood flow, leading to a stroke. This plaque build-up can cause subtle cognitive and memory problems for months or years before a stroke finally occurs. Thus, memory problems may be a sign of plaque build-up in the arteries, or atherosclerosis – a forerunner to stroke.
What Does This Mean?
Memory problems, especially in people over the age of 50, should be taken seriously, especially if they occur in people at high risk of stroke because of hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, cholesterol problems or a strong family history. Once a stroke happens, it’s difficult to recover any function that’s lost. Memory and cognitive problems may be the only warning signs – and a clear signal that it’s time to see a doctor before a stroke strikes.
2 comments:
Nice information. Hypertension is the leading cause of stroke and the risk factor most important controllable stroke. Diabetes is also an independent risk factor for stroke.
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