Atrial fibrillation as a risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia

Using longitudinal data from the Whitehall II study, spanning the age range 45 to 85 years with two-third of atrial fibrillation recorded in those less than 75 years, we show atrial fibrillation to be associated with accelerated cognitive decline and higher risk of dementia. Multistate models showed atrial fibrillation to also increase risk of dementia in those free of stroke, suggesting that clinical stroke does not fully explain the association between atrial fibrillation and dementia.

Singh-Manoux et al. European Heart Journal. 2017: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28460139

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