British Researchers Identify Link Between Childhood IQ And Vascular Dementia

Main Category: Alzheimer's / Dementia
Also Included In: Neurology / Neuroscience;  Pediatrics / Children's Health
Article Date: 26 Jun 2008 - 5:00 PDT

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Scottish researchers funded by the UK's leading dementia research charity, the Alzheimer's Research Trust, have found a link between childhood IQ and vascular dementia later in life.

Their research, published in the journal Neurology, found that lower childhood intelligence increases the risk of vascular dementia, a disease which currently affects 112,000 people in the UK. The results suggest that interventions to lower blood pressure and smoking targeted from early in life to those with a lower IQ could reduce the numbers of people developing dementia in old age. They also help scientists to understand what is happening in the brains of people with dementia and the best way to tackle different dementias.

Researchers based at the University of Edinburgh compared the records of 173 people who participated in the Scottish Mental Survey of 1932, when almost every child aged 11 years in Scotland took a mental ability test. They showed that lower childhood IQ increased the risk of vascular dementia, but not Alzheimer's disease. Because the difference was not seen in Alzheimer's, this suggests that increased risk of 'dementia' may be due to vascular causes.

Lead researcher, Dr Brian McGurn, formerly from the University of Edinburgh now based at Hairmyres hospital, East Kilbride said, "Our work suggests a possible link between mental ability in early life and risk of developing vascular dementia. The unique data available from the Scottish Mental Survey means the link can be demonstrated independent of factors like socio-economic status and education."

Rebecca Wood, Chief Executive of the Alzheimer's Research Trust said, "This research confirms that vascular risk factors are very important in tackling dementia. If we live a healthier lifestyle and reduce our risk of high blood pressure, cholesterol and don't smoke, then this gives us a much better chance of avoiding dementia later in life.

With 700,000 people in the UK with dementia today, we urgently need to fund more research to find ways to prevent, treat or cure dementia, but research is seriously under-funded".

Notes

- The Alzheimer's Research Trust is the UK's leading research charity for dementia. For free information on dementia and the treatments available, visit www.alzheimers-research.org.uk or phone 01223 843899.

- Vascular dementia is the second most common form of dementia after Alzheimer's disease and is linked to high blood pressure, high cholesterol or smoking. There are 112,000 people with vascular dementia and 417,000 with Alzheimer's disease, and a total of 700,000 people with all types of dementia in the UK.

- The research 'Childhood cognitive ability and risk of late-onset Alzheimer and vascular dementia' by Dr Brian McGurn, Prof Ian Deary and Prof John Starr at the University of Edinburgh and is published in Neurology on 25th June 2008.

Alzheimer's Research Trust