NEW DELHI — Older adults who experience rapid, moment-to-moment fluctuations in blood pressure may face a higher risk of brain shrinkage and nerve cell damage, according to a new study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.
Researchers found that short-term “dynamic instability” in blood pressure — changes occurring over just minutes — was linked to loss of brain tissue in regions essential for memory and cognition, as well as elevated blood markers indicating nerve cell injury.
“Our findings show that even when average blood pressure is normal, instability from one heartbeat to the next may place stress on the brain,” said Daniel Nation, Professor of Gerontology and Medicine at the University of Southern California’s Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. “These moment-to-moment swings appear to be associated with the same kinds of brain changes we see in early neurodegeneration.”
While long-term high blood pressure is a well-known risk factor for dementia, this study highlights the potential dangers of short-term variability — the degree to which blood pressure rises and falls over brief periods. Such fluctuations, researchers suggest, can strain the brain’s small blood vessels, impairing their ability to provide consistent blood flow.
The study assessed two key measures: Average Real Variability (ARV), which tracks how much systolic blood pressure — the upper number in a reading — changes between heartbeats, and the Arterial Stiffness Index (ASI), which measures how flexible arteries are in adapting to those pressure changes. Together, these indicators reveal the extent of “blood pressure dynamic instability.”
“This study suggests that excessive fluctuations could be a sign of vascular ageing that contributes to brain injury,” Nation explained.
MRI scans were conducted on 105 healthy adults aged 55 to 89 with no major neurological conditions. Those with both high ARV and high ASI showed smaller volumes in the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex — regions crucial for learning and memory and among the first affected by Alzheimer’s disease.
Additionally, blood tests revealed that participants in this group had elevated levels of neurofilament light (NfL), a biomarker that increases when nerve cells are damaged.
Researchers said the findings underscore the importance of monitoring not just average blood pressure, but also its variability. The results may pave the way for new strategies to prevent cognitive decline and protect brain health through improved cardiovascular management. (Source: IANS)
