Blood pressure medication could help to slow down dementia and Alzheimer's.
An Irish study observed 361 patients around the age of 77 who were diagnosed with either vascular dementia or Alzheimer's disease, Medical News Today reported.
Eighty-five of the participants were already using blood pressure controlling drugs known as ACE inhibitors at the beginning of the study. Thirty of the patients who started taking the medications over the first six months of the study were monitored as well.
The researchers used "Standardized Mini Mental State Examination (SMMSE) or the Quick Mild Cognitive Impairment (Qmci)," to asses the rate of mental decline in the patients. They ran the tests at the beginning and end of a six month period.
The patients who had been taking the ACE inhibitors had a slower rate of decline than those who did not.
Patients who had been prescribed the medication over the course of the study also had a higher rate of cognitive function.
"This [study] supports the growing body of evidence for the use of ACE inhibitors and other [blood pressure-lowering] agents in the management of dementia. Although the differences were small and of uncertain clinical significance, if sustained over years, the compounding effects may well have significant clinical benefits," the researchers said.
The drugs can cause side effects such as: coughing, headaches, rash, metallic taste, drowsiness, weakness, low blood pressure, and elevated blood potassium levels. Certain patients may also experience kidney problems, MedicineNet reported.
If further research finds the drugs are a viable option for slowing the effects of cognitive disorders they may only be prescribed to certain groups of patients, Medical News Today reported.
"If these data can be reproduced in a randomized trial of sufficient length, incorporating appropriate outcome measures, such as an amyloid positron emission tomography (PET), then these agents are likely to have significant benefits in delaying or even preventing dementia," the researchers concluded.
