INTRODUCTION:

A high prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia has been described recently in Colombia, due to the increase of the older adult population with low level of schooling. It is still unclear the mechanism by which and high blood pressure (HBP), in the absence of stroke, increase the risk of MCI or dementia.

OBJECTIVE:

To review the possible association of HBP and diabetes with the risk of progression to cognitive impairment.

METHODS:

We searched databases from 2007 to 2017, and case-control or cohort studies on adults aged 65 years or older with HBP or diabetes in whom cognitive functions were evaluated over time.

RESULTS:

The search yielded 12 articles that met the selection criteria. Six articles report the relationship between hypertension and the risk of developing dementia; of these, five for vascular dementia (VDa) and one for both Alzheimer dementia (AD) and VDa as the outcome. They also report on the risk of developing dementia according to systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Of the six cohort studies included, five found a statistically significant relationship of diabetes and progression to MCI or AD.

CONCLUSION:

Patients with hypertension have an increased risk of VDa, followed by mixed dementia. DM is associated with a higher frequency of AD, especially if diabetes appears at an early age.

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