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TL;DR
This population-based cohort study of 650,476 adults with hypertension identified age, female sex, and high comorbidity burden as the top risk factors for developing dementia over a mean 9.5 years.
PLOS ONE · 4 authors, 6 centres
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This population-based cohort study of 650,476 adults with hypertension identified age, female sex, and high comorbidity burden as the top risk factors for developing dementia over a mean 9.5 years.
A nationwide retrospective cohort study analyzed data from 650,476 hypertensive adults in Korea, followed for a mean of 9.5 years. The primary outcome was incident dementia, defined by ICD-10 codes and anti-dementia medication prescriptions. Using Cox proportional hazard models, the relative importance of risk factors was assessed by calculating R^2^ values. Age was the strongest predictor (R^2=0.0504), followed by comorbidity burden (R^2=0.0023) and female sex (R^2=0.0022). Lifestyle factors including physical inactivity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and obesity were also significant predictors. Physical inactivity was highlighted as an important modifiable risk factor across all age groups. Limitations include the retrospective design, lack of a non-hypertensive control group, and potential for unmeasured confounding factors. The findings suggest prioritizing comorbidity control and lifestyle modifications for dementia prevention in hypertensive patients.