Vascular retinopathy in relation to cognitive functioning in an older population--the Hoorn Study

Abstract

To the Editor: Cognitive impairment and dementia are important health problems that may be caused by vascular damage in the brain.[1] The cerebral vasculature is anatomically, embryologically, and physiologically related to that of the retina, and both are sensitive to exposure to vascular risk factors.[2, 3] Vascular damage to the retina is easy to measure noninvasively. Hence, visualization of retinal vessels may offer insight into the status of the vessels in the brain and thus provide insight into vascular causes of late-life cognitive impairment. A recent systematic review found variable associations between retinal vascular changes and performance on various cognitive domains in persons without dementia.[4, 5] The goal of the current study was to extend these findings by assessing these associations in a population-based cohort using a detailed neuropsychological examination.