Important News
Cognitive decline rate after a mini stroke is the same as a full stroke, UAB
While strokes are widely recognized as a major cause of long-term disability in the United States, their quieter cousin, the mini stroke, or transient ischemic attack (TIA), often flies under the radar. These brief episodes of disrupted brain function may seem harmless, but could they be warning signs of something more serious?
Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham evaluated TIAs’ effect on cognitive function and found a correlation between TIAs and future cognitive decline. While TIA participants were less impaired than stroke participants, results showed the two groups have the same rate of cognitive decline after their cerebrovascular event. Results were published in JAMA Neurology.
"Association of Duration of Recognized Hypertension and Stroke Risk: The REGARDS Study"
Longer Duration of Hypertension Increases Stroke Risk Despite Treatment: Data from the REGARDS Study
As identified in the “2024 Guideline for the Primary Prevention of Stroke: A Guideline From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association,” management of blood pressure is considered one of the eight important strategies to close the “prevention gap” for acute stroke. There are limited published data regarding the impact of hypertension duration, particularly on stroke risk and impact of blood pressure control. Howard et al. sought to address these questions in their study using data from the REGARDS Study, a USA, population-based, longitudinal study of 30,000 people with equal representation of sex and race (Black and non-Hispanic White). The primary aim was to assess the association of duration of hypertension on stroke risk when adjusted for systolic blood pressure and other cardiovascular risk factors.