According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 47% of adults in the United States have high blood pressure, or hypertension.
Even though uncontrolled high blood pressure can damage organs, including the heart, and lead to stroke, just 1 in 4 adults in the U.S. with hypertension have it under control.
New study findings, which researchers presented at the American Heart Association’s (AHA’s) International Stroke Conference 2022, have revealed that long-term, uncontrolled hypertension has an additional effect.
The research shows that having hypertension since young adulthood results in changes to the brain by the age of 55 that may lead to cognitive problems.
The AHA’s threshold for a diagnosis of hypertension is a systolic blood pressure reading of 130 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) or higher and a diastolic value of 80 mm Hg or higher.
The lead author of the study is Dr. Christina Lineback from the Department of Neurology at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.