USA: People who experience episodes of kidney function decline in their young adulthood are at greater risk for worse cognitive performance in their midlife, a recent study in the journal Neurology has suggested.
Sanaz Sedaghat, National Institute on Aging (L.J.L.), Baltimore, MD, and colleagues tested the hypothesis that end-stage renal disease (ESRD) risk exposure during young adulthood is related to worse cognitive performance in midlife.
For the purpose, the researchers included 2,604 participants from the population-based Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study (mean age 35 years, 54% women, 45% Black). Estimated glomerular filtration rate and albumin-to-creatinine ratio were measured every 5 years at year (Y) 10 through Y30.
At each visit, moderate/high risk of ESRD according to the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes guidelines (estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 mL/min/1.73 m2 or albumin-to-creatinine ratio >30 mg/g) was defined, totaled over examinations, and categorized into 0 episodes, 1 episode, and >1 episodes of ESRD risk. At Y30, participants underwent global and multidomain cognitive assessment.
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Key findings of the study include:
· Over the course of 20 years, 427 participants (16% of the study population) had ≥1 episodes of ESRD risk exposure.
· Individuals with more risk episodes had lower composite cognitive function, psychomotor speed, and executive function.
· All these associations were independent of sociodemographic status and cardiovascular risk factors.
"In this study, we showed that episodes of decline in kidney function over the young-adulthood course are associated with worse cognitive performance at midlife. Preserving kidney function in young age needs to be investigated as a potential strategy to preserve cognitive function in midlife," the researchers concluded.
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The study, "Decline in kidney function over the course of adulthood and cognitive function in midlife," is published in the journal Neurology.
DOI: https://n.neurology.org/content/95/17/e2389