(NewsNation) — A study published in the European Heart Journal could help predict the likelihood of dementia up to 25 years in advance.
The research found a link between increased levels of cardiac troponin, a protein found in the heart that is released into the bloodstream when the heart is damaged, and more rapid cognitive decline in later years.
A cardiac troponin test was given to 5,985 participants who regularly underwent cognitive tests between 1997-1999 and 2023.
Individuals with higher cardiac troponin levels were 18% more likely to have brain shrinkage as they got older.
“The development of dementia involves a long prodromal period, and neuropathological abnormality and change of biomarker levels can begin 15–20 years before clinical diagnosis of dementia,” the report read.
“No other population-based studies have measured cardiac troponin level at midlife with a follow-up period of 20 years, which is critical to examine the association between subclinical myocardial injury in midlife and incident dementia.”
The study concluded that measuring cardiac troponin during one’s midlife “may be useful in the early identification of a population at risk of cognitive decline and dementia.”