Cardiovascular risks greater in middle-aged women: Study

New research has found that the negative impact of most cardiovascular diseases may be stronger for women than men. Results of the study have been published in the Neurology Journal. Study author Michelle M. Mielke, PhD., of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, and a member of the American Academy of Neurology, was quoted in a report as saying, “Our results show that midlife cardiovascular conditions and risk factors were associated with midlife cognitive decline, but the association is stronger for women.”
She added, “Specifically, we found that certain cardiovascular conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and dyslipidemia, which is abnormally high levels of fats in the blood, had stronger associations with cognitive decline in women compared to men.” The study looked at 1857 people without dementia who were between the ages of 50 and 69 at the start of the study.
The candidates were given a clinical evaluation every 15 months for an average of three years. It included nine tests of memory, language, executive function, and spatial skills combined to calculate a composite cognitive score. Overall, 1,465, or 79 per cent, of the participants had at least one cardiovascular condition or risk factor. More men than women had at least one risk factor: 83 per cent for men compared to 75 per cent for women. Researchers found that most cardiovascular conditions were more strongly associated with cognitive function among women.
Mielke said, “More research is needed to examine sex differences in the relationships between the cardiovascular risk factors and specific biomarkers of brain disease like white matter hyperintensities, areas of dead tissue and overall white matter integrity in midlife.”
She added, “That may help us better understand the sex-specific mechanisms, by which the cardiovascular conditions and risk factors contribute to cognitive impairment in both women and men.”