Abstract
Hypertension, one of the main risk factors for cardiovascular disease, is thought to play a crucial role in the pathophysiology of cognitive impairment. Studies have associated hypertension with subjective cognitive failures – concerns about a person’s own cognitive function − which are considered as a probable early sign of cognitive dysfunction. Subjective cognitive failures reflect a pathological process occurring in the brain that has been associated with hypertension and with other cardiovascular risk factors and which may be assessed by neuropsychological evaluation and brain imaging studies. The underlying cerebral structural change associated with cognitive decline is a consequence of the cerebral small vessel disease induced by high blood pressure and may be detected on magnetic resonance imaging as white matter hyperintensities, cerebral microbleeds, lacunar infarcts or enlarged perivascular spaces. This chapter aims to discuss current available evidence on subjective cognitive failures and their relationship with hypertension and to highlight the best antihypertensive treatment for this condition, focusing on the antihypertensive drugs proven to have a positive effect on the incidence of dementia.
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Monteagudo, E., Sierra, C., Coca, A. (2016). Hypertension and Subjective Cognitive Failures. In: Coca, A. (eds) Hypertension and Brain Damage. Updates in Hypertension and Cardiovascular Protection. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32074-8_14
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32074-8_14
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