Arterial stiffness and risk of dementia in late life: The ARIC neurocognitive study

Figures

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  FIGURE 1. Kaplan‐Meier curves depicting percentage of dementia‐free participants by pulse wave velocity measures: ARIC Study (2011 to 2022) (n = 4818). Elevated cfPWV, total PWV, structural PWV, and load‐dependent PWV are defined as greater than or equal to 13.4, 15.8, 15.5, and 0.7 m/s, respectively. Multivariate imputation by chained equations was employed to impute missing cfPWV measurements. Dementia diagnosis was determined by adjudicated review, telephone interviews, informant interviews, hospitalization records, and death certificates. Diagnosis date was based on the last examination or phone‐based assessment. If a dementia diagnosis was ascertained from an informant interview, hospitalization record, or death certificate, the date was defined as 180 days prior to the documented incident or interview. cfPWV, carotid‐femoral pulse wave velocity; PWV, pulse wave velocity.

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  FIGURE 2. Multivariable‐adjusted hazard ratio estimates (95% CI) of dementia by carotid‐femoral pulse wave velocity: ARIC Study (2011 to 2022) (n = 4818). Multivariable cause‐specific Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to model the associations between cfPWV and dementia. Demographics models adjusted for age, sex, race‐center, education, and APOE ε4 alleles as time‐invariant covariates. Cardiovascular models additionally adjusted for heart rate, mean arterial pressure, hypertension medication, and diabetes as time‐varying covariates. Multivariate imputation by chained equations was employed to impute missing covariates and missing cfPWV measurements. One standard deviation of cfPWV is equal to 3.1 m/s. Elevated cfPWV is defined as ≥13.4 m/s. Dementia diagnosis was determined by adjudicated review, telephone interviews, informant interviews, hospitalization records, and death certificates. Censoring based on the last completed examination or phone‐based assessment. If a dementia diagnosis was ascertained from an informant interview, hospitalization record, or death certificate, the date was defined as 180 days prior to the documented incident or interview. cfPWV,…

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  FIGURE 3. Multivariable‐adjusted hazard ratio estimates (95% CI) of dementia by total, structural, and load‐dependent pulse wave velocity: ARIC Study (2011 to 2022) (n = 4818). Multivariable cause‐specific Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to model the associations between total, structural, and load‐dependent PWV and dementia. Demographics models adjusted for age, sex, race‐center, education, and APOE ε4 alleles as time‐invariant covariates. Cardiovascular models additionally adjusted for heart rate, mean arterial pressure, hypertension medication, and diabetes as time‐varying covariates. Multivariate imputation by chained equations was employed to impute missing covariates and missing cfPWV measurements. One standard deviation of total, structural, or load‐dependent PWV is equal to 3.8, 3.5, or 0.9 m/s, respectively. Elevated total, structural, and load‐dependent PWV were defined as greater than or equal to 15.8, 15.5, and 0.7 m/s, respectively. Dementia diagnosis was determined by adjudicated review, telephone interviews, informant interviews, hospitalization records, and death certificates. Censoring was based on the last completed examination or phone‐based…