Hackensack University Medical Center Contributes to AF-SCREEN International Collaboration Report on AF and Cognitive Impairment Link
Report summarizes evidence of atrial fibrillation tie to dementia and cognitive impairment and offers care protocols
Hackensack University Medical Center contributed to a new report from the AF-SCREEN International Collaboration that summarizes the growing evidence linking atrial fibrillation (AF) to cognitive impairment and dementia. Taya Glotzer, M.D., professor of medicine at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, was one of the authors of the paper.
Evidence suggests a consistent association between atrial fibrillation (AF) and cognitive impairment and dementia that is independent of clinical stroke. This report provides guidance on dementia diagnosis and management in patients with AF.
The report also addresses suspected pathophysiologic mechanisms and identifies pertinent gaps in knowledge for future investigation. While AF and dementia share many risk factors, the association is seemingly independent of these variables.
Proposed links include cerebral microinfarction, AF-related cerebral hypoperfusion, inflammation, microhemorrhage, brain atrophy, and systemic atherosclerotic vascular disease.
The value of screening for AF across all cognitive abilities and screening for cognitive impairment in patients with AF are discussed.
The report calls for cognition evaluation in future AF studies and further studies to establish whether AF is a risk factor for cognitive impairment, to investigate dementia prevention strategies, and to determine whether screening for unknown AF followed by targeted therapy, such as anticoagulation, might prevent or reduce cognitive impairment and dementia.
“The report opens a rich opportunity to explore connections that could influence patients affected by two debilitating diseases crossing multiple care specialties. Our multidisciplinary team at Hackensack University Medical Center is poised to delve into this promising research frontier,” said Dr. Glotzer, director of Cardiac Research at Hackensack University Medical Center and co-author on the report.
Learn more about cardiovascular innovations happening at Hackensack University Medical Center.
