\nISLAMABAD, OCT 06 (ONLINE): New research, published today in the journal Neurology, reports that high levels as well as low levels of \u201cgood\u201d HDL cholesterol were associated with a higher risk of developing dementia.
\nThe study involved more than 184,000 participants with an average of 70 years who were followed for 17 years.<\/p>\n
The researchers were seeking to understand the relationship between two types of cholesterol, HDL-C and LDL-C, and the likelihood of developing dementia in older age.
\nWhile there have been some studies on this topic, not many have considered the influence of statin medications or examined the possibility of more complex associations.<\/p>\n
The researchers explored these connections using extensive data from both survey responses and electronic health records.
\nTracking dementia
\nThe study subjects were members of the Kaiser Permanente Northern California health plan who were 55 or older.<\/p>\n
These members had taken a health survey between 2002 and 2007, did not have dementia before the survey, and had their cholesterol measured within two years after the survey.
\nThe research team tracked these members until December 2020 to see if they developed dementia.<\/p>\n
They used specific methods and models to understand the data, ensuring they considered various factors such as demographics and medications.
\nThe researchers said the findings showed that both very low and very high levels of HDL-C were linked to a higher risk of developing dementia.
\nRelationship between HDL-C levels and dementia risk<\/p>\n
The researchers reported that people with the highest HDL cholesterol levels had a 15% higher dementia risk compared to those with mid-range levels.
\nThose with the lowest HDL levels had a 7% higher dementia risk versus the mid-range group.<\/p>\n
Researchers said these relationships held even after accounting for other factors such as alcohol use, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.
\nOn the other hand, levels of \u201cbad\u201d LDL-C cholesterol didn\u2019t show a clear link to dementia risk for everyone. However, for those who were using statins, a higher LDL-C level indicated a slightly higher dementia risk.
\nAge also seemed to play a role in the relationship between HDL-C and dementia risk but not with LDL-C.<\/p>\n
While this large study shows associations, it cannot prove high or low HDL cholesterol levels directly cause dementia.
\nErin Ferguson, MPH, a lead study author and a former Boston University SPH student currently affiliated with the University of California San Francisco, told Medical News Today that \u201cwe found a U-shaped relationship between HDL-C and dementia risk, such that people with either lower or higher HDL-C had a slightly elevated risk of dementia.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOverall, we found no association between LDL-C and dementia,\u201d Ferguson added.
\nClifford Segil, DO, a neurologist at Providence Saint John\u2019s Health Center in Calilfornia who was not involved in this research, told Medical News Today that \u201cstudies looking into how to prevent dementia are appreciated as our treatments for dementia in 2023 continue to only provide modest clinical improvements.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a reminder, the three most common dementias are Alzheimer\u2019s dementia, vascular or multi-infarct dementia, and Lewy-Body dementia or Parkinson\u2019s dementia. Statin use, or medication used to lower cholesterol in our blood, has been proven to decrease a risk of second lifetime heart attack and stroke. Statin use needs to be studied specifically regarding decreasing the risk of multi-infarct of vascular dementia.<\/p>\n
Dr. Clifford Segil
\n\u201cThis study looked at using cholesterol-lowering medications to decrease all dementia rather than statin use to decrease multi-infarct or vascular dementia,\u201d Dr. Segil pointed out.
\nFurther research needed to understand complex associations
\nFerguson noted that \u201cthis work suggests that some lipoproteins (like HDL) may be modifiable risk factors of dementia, even in late life, but to take advantage of this we need to next evaluate whether these effects are causal and how to effectively modify HDL.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the magnitude of the association is fairly small, these results suggest that the relationship between HDL-C and dementia is complex. Our work supports a body of recent literature showing there are nonlinear relationships between HDL and other diseases (like cardiovascular disease and cancer) and mortality. The mechanisms for why these nonlinear relationships exist are still unknown.
\nErin Ferguson, MPH
\n\u201cFuture studies will need to investigate causal relationships at play to confirm that there is clinical relevance,\u201d Ferguson explained.
\nSegil agreed, saying, \u201cmore research should follow this study specifically looking at the role of using statins, or cholesterol-lowering medications, on the development of multi-infarct or vascular dementia.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPatients with memory loss often have MRI brain [findings consistent] with chronic ischemic changes and statins use may decrease these small silent strokes, but further research is needed to determine if this is the case,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
Segil concluded by saying \u201celderly patients should not start taking statin medications to prevent dementia based on this study.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD, OCT 06 (ONLINE): New research, published today in the journal Neurology, reports that high levels as well as low levels of \u201cgood\u201d HDL cholesterol were associated with a higher risk of developing dementia. The study involved more than 184,000 participants with an average of […]<\/p>\n
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