Dementia linked to irregular heartbeat

The Heart Research Institute's Ben Freedman says there is strong evidence of a connection between atrial fibrillation (AF) and the deterioration of cognitive function leading to dementia.

"People with AF are at increased risk of dementia and the link is independent of stroke and other risk factors," he said.

"Earlier diagnosis of AF could be considered a strategy to prevent or delay dementia and stroke."

Australia is part of a five-year global trial, known as the AF Screen International project led by Professor Freedman, screening 100,000 people in the UK and in Australia.

Researchers across 37 countries, including Canada, Greece, South Korea and Sweden, contributed to the findings, which were published in the medical journal Circulation.

"We might be able to intervene and reverse the cognitive decline before dementia, which would be a game changer," Prof Freedman said.

He said dementia and AF were expected to increase with the ageing of the world's population.

"Projections indicate the number of individuals with AF will increase by 150 per cent over the next four decades, while the incidence of dementia is expected to double every six years," Prof Freedman said.

Both conditions share risk factors including older age, hypertension, diabetes, sleep apnoea, coronary artery disease, strokes, obesity and excessive alcohol consumption.

For people with an irregular heartbeat, the blood circulates in the heart in an abnormal way so there is a tendency for clots to develop.

These clots can break off and travel around the body in the bloodstream, and if a clot blocks a brain artery, this can cause a stroke.

Prof Freedman said one in three people aged over 50 would develop AF. The condition is more common in men than women.

He recommended yearly pulse checks for elderly Australians, saying that only 11 per cent of the population over 65 were regularly screened for AF.

Australian Associated Press