High blood pressure is linked to loss of mental function in people over 45, a new study finds.

“A number of other studies have looked at the relationship between blood pressure and cognitive function,” said George Howard, chairman of the department of biostatistics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health, and a member of the team reporting the finding in the Aug. 25 issue of Neurology. “Some studies found such a relationship, others did not. We think that this study, one of the larger ones and well done, adds substantially to whether there is a relationship here.”

The new study “supports a large body of literature that shows that hypertension, which almost always begins in mid-life, has an impact on cognition,” said Dr. David Knopman, a professor of neurology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

Health News by Ed Edelson, 08/24/2009

Tags: Hypertension, Hypertension, Neurology, Neurology