Cardiovascular disease risk scores and incident dementia and cognitive decline in older men and women

Introduction: Risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) also increase the risk of dementia. However, whether commonly used CVD risk scores are associated with dementia risk in older adults who do not have a history of CVD, and potential gender differences in this association, remains unclear. The aim of this study was to determine whether CVD risk scores are prospectively associated with cognitive decline and dementia in initially healthy older men and women.Methods: 19,114 participants from a prospective cohort of individuals aged 65+ years without known CVD or dementia at recruitment. The Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease risk score (ASCVDRS), Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation2- Older Persons (SCORE2-OP) and the Framingham risk score (FRS) were calculated at baseline. Risk of dementia (according to DSM-IV criteria) and cognitive decline (defined as a >1.5 standard deviation (SD) decline in global cognition, episodic memory, psychomotor speed or verbal fluency from the previous year) were assessed using Hazard Ratio (HR).Results: Over a median follow-up of 6.4 years, 850 individuals developed dementia and 4352 cognitive decline. Men and women in the highest ASCVDRS tertile had a 41% (95%CI 1.08,1.85) and 45% (1.11,1.89) increased risk of dementia compared to the lowest tertile respectively. Likewise, men and women in the highest SCORE2-OP tertile had a 64% (1.24,2.16) and 60% (1.22,2.11) increased risk of dementia compared to the lowest tertile respectively. Findings were similar but the risk was slightly lesser when examining risk of cognitive decline for both ASCVDRS and SCORE2-OP. However, FRS was only associated with the risk of cognitive decline among women (highest vs. lowest tertiles: 1.13 [1.01-1.26]).Conclusion: These findings suggest the utility of the ASCVDRS and SCORE2-OP in clinical practice, to not only assess future risk of CVD, but also as potential early indicators of cognitive impairment, even in relatively healthy older men and women.