Hope for treatment for hundreds of thousands with vascular dementia as scientists discover what could halt a ‘devastating condition in its path’

Experts are one step closer to a treatment for vascular dementia after discovering what causes the condition.

Vascular dementia, which affects hundreds of thousands in the UK and US, is caused by high blood pressure leading to reduced blood flow to the brain.

The brain cells become starved of nutrients and eventually become damaged and die, resulting in symptoms such as poor memory and lack of concentration.

While it is normal for the arteries of the brain to narrow and widen in response to changes in blood pressure, persistently high blood pressure causes the arteries to remain narrow and restrict blood flow.

Until now it was not known why this happened.

But researchers at the University of Manchester have found that – in mice – high blood pressure disrupts communication between artery cells in the brain.

They found that this happens when two cell structures, which normally help send messages to tell arteries to widen, move farther apart.

This prevents the messages from reaching their target, permanently constricting the arteries and restricting blood flow to the brain.

It is hoped that the research, funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), will accelerate development of treatment for the condition.

By identifying drugs that can restore this communication, the experts hope to soon be able to improve blood flow to affected brain regions and slow the progression of vascular dementia.

While the findings have yet to be confirmed in humans, the processes of blood vessel constriction and dilation are very similar in mice and humans.

Professor Adam Greenstein, one of the study’s leaders, said: ‘By discovering how high blood pressure keeps arteries in the brain constricted, our research reveals a new avenue for drug discovery that could help find the first treatment for vascular dementia. .

“Getting blood to return normally to damaged areas of the brain will be critical to stopping this devastating condition.

“Any drugs that have been discovered to improve blood flow to the brain could also potentially open a new line of attack in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, which causes very similar damage to blood vessels as vascular dementia.”

“Medications to restore healthy blood flow may make current treatments, which aim to remove harmful amyloid plaques in the brain, more effective.”

Professor Sir Nilesh Samani, Medical Director of the BHF, said: ‘Vascular dementia affects around 150,000 people in the UK, and this number is going up.

“There are no treatments to slow or stop the disease, but we know that high blood pressure is a major risk factor. The incurable symptoms are extremely distressing for patients and their loved ones.

‘This exciting research reveals a specific mechanism by which high blood pressure may increase the risk of vascular dementia.

“Testing how arteries remain permanently narrowed in vascular dementia could lead to the development of new effective treatments, raising hopes that there may soon be a way to prevent this disease from destroying more lives.”

The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

WHAT IS DEMENTIA?

Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of neurological conditions

A WORLDWIDE CARE

Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of progressive neurological conditions (affecting the brain) that affect memory, thinking, and behavior.

There are many forms of dementia, with Alzheimer’s disease being the most common.

Some people have a combination of different forms of dementia.

Regardless of which type is diagnosed, each person experiences dementia in their own unique way.

Dementia is a global problem, but it is most common in wealthier countries, where people are likely to live very old.

HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED?

The Alzheimer’s Society reports that there are more than 900,000 people living with dementia in the UK today. This is expected to rise to 1.6 million by 2040.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting between 50 and 75 percent of those diagnosed.

There are an estimated 5.5 million Alzheimer’s patients in the US. A similar percentage increase is expected for the coming years.

As a person’s age increases, so does the risk of developing dementia.

The rate of diagnoses is improving, but many people with dementia are thought to remain undiagnosed.

IS THERE A MEDICINE?

Currently there is no cure for dementia.

But new drugs can slow its progression, and the sooner it’s caught, the more effective treatments can be.

Source: Alzheimer’s Association