Association of Cardiovascular Health Level in Older Age With Cognitive Decline and Incident Dementia

Importance Evidence is limited regarding the relation between cardiovascular health level and dementia risk. Objective To investigate the association between cardiovascular health level, defined using the 7-item tool from the American Heart Association (AHA), and risk of dementia and cognitive decline in older persons. Design, Setting, and Participants Population-based cohort study of persons aged 65 years or older from Bordeaux, Dijon, and Montpellier, France, without history of cardiovascular diseases or dementia at baseline who underwent repeated in-person neuropsychological testing (January 1999–July 2016) and systematic detection of incident dementia (date of final follow-up, July 26, 2016). Exposures The number of the AHA’s Life’s Simple 7 metrics at recommended optimal level (nonsmoking, body mass index Main Outcomes and Measures Incident dementia validated by an expert committee and change in a composite score of global cognition (in standard units, with values indicating distance from population means, 0 equal to the mean, and +1 and −1 equal to 1 SD above and below the mean). Results Among 6626 participants (mean age, 73.7 years; 4200 women [63.4%]), 2412 (36.5%), 3781 (57.1%), and 433 (6.5%) had 0 to 2, 3 to 4, and 5 to 7 health metrics at optimal levels, respectively, at baseline. Over a mean follow-up duration of 8.5 (range, 0.6-16.6) years, 745 participants had incident adjudicated dementia. Compared with the incidence rate of dementia of 1.76 (95% CI, 1.38-2.15) per 100 person-years among those with 0 or 1 health metrics at optimal levels, the absolute differences in incident dementia rates for 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 to 7 metrics were, respectively, −0.26 (95% CI, −0.48 to −0.04), −0.59 (95% CI, −0.80 to −0.38), −0.43 (95% CI, −0.65 to −0.21), −0.93 (95% CI, −1.18 to −0.68), and −0.96 (95% CI, −1.37 to −0.56) per 100 person-years. In multivariable models, the hazard ratios for dementia were 0.90 (95% CI, 0.84-0.97) per additional optimal metric and 0.92 (95% CI, 0.89-0.96) per additional point on the global score. Furthermore, the gain in global cognition associated with each additional optimal metric at baseline was 0.031 (95% CI, 0.009-0.053) standard units at inclusion, 0.068 (95% CI, 0.045-0.092) units at year 6, and 0.072 (95% CI, 0.042-0.102) units at year 12. Conclusions and Relevance In this cohort of older adults, increased numbers of optimal cardiovascular health metrics and a higher cardiovascular health score were associated with a lower risk of dementia and lower rates of cognitive decline. These findings may support the promotion of cardiovascular health to prevent risk factors associated with cognitive decline and dementia.