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17 Modifiable Risk Factors Shared by Stroke, Dementia, and Late-Life Depression

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on April 10, 2025.

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, April 10, 2025 -- Seventeen modifiable risk factors are shared by stroke, dementia, and late-life depression, according to a review published online April 3 in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry.

Jasper Senff, M.D., from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review to identify overlapping risk factors for stroke, dementia, and late-life depression and calculate their relative impact on a composite outcome.

Using data from 59 selected meta-analyses, the researchers identified disability-adjusted life year (DALY)-weighted risk factors for the composite outcome that included alcohol (normalized β-coefficient highest category, −34), blood pressure (130), body mass index (70), fasting plasma glucose (94), total cholesterol (22), leisure-time cognitive activity (−91), depressive symptoms (57), diet (51), hearing loss (60), kidney function (101), pain (42), physical activity (−56), purpose in life (−50), sleep (76), smoking (91), social engagement (53), and stress (55).

"Dementia, stroke, and late-life depression are connected and intertwined, so if you develop one of them, there's a substantial chance you may develop another one in the future," Senff said in a statement. "And because they share these overlapping risk factors, preventive efforts could lead to a reduction in the incidence of more than one of these diseases, which provides an opportunity to simultaneously reduce the burden of age-related brain diseases."

Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical, medical device, and biotechnology industries.

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Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted April 2025

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