Elevated blood pressure: a genetically determined risk factor for cerebral artery dissection

BACKGROUND We aim to investigate the potential causal link between blood pressure (BP) levels and cerebral artery dissection (CAD) risk by employing a 2-sample Mendelian randomization (TSMR) framework. METHODS Utilizing large-scale genome-wide association studies-retrieved data, we employed various Mendelian randomization (MR) techniques, including inverse variance weighted (IVW), MR-Egger regression, weighted median, and weighted mode, to ascertain BP’s causal impact on CAD. The MR-Egger intercept was calculated to assess pleiotropy presence, determining heterogeneity by Cochran’s Q statistic. RESULTS The findings highlighted a significant association between elevated systolic BP (SBP; IVW: OR = 3.09, 95% CI: 1.11–8.61, P = 0.031) and increased diastolic BP (DBP; IVW: OR = 2.17, 95% CI: 1.14–6.21, P = 0.023) with CAD risk. Sensitivity analyses reinforced the robustness and reliability of these results. CONCLUSIONS The results from this TSMR study suggest a causal link between high SBP and DBP and the increased likelihood of CAD, which provides genetic evidence for a reduced risk of CAD under BP control.