Keywords: cognitive decline, stroke, cardiovascular disease, information processing, memory

“Vascular cognitive impairment; at the heart of the matter”

Cognitive decline is an underexposed consequence of stroke and heart disease. This dissertation reveals that coronary heart disease, such as myocardial infarction and angina pectoris, is associated with an increased risk of dementia. In addition, people who recently developed cardiovascular problems were found to experience a more rapid decline in information processing speed and memory. In stroke survivors, cognitive problems were not elusively due to the brain lesion itself, but were associated with more diffuse brain damage. This study provides important evidence to support the relationship between cardiovascular health and brain health.