Prevalent stroke, age of its onset, and post-stroke lifestyle in relation to dementia: A prospective cohort study

Introduction: The association of age at stroke onset with dementia and the role of post-stroke lifestyle on dementia risk remains unclear.

Methods: We leveraged data of 496,251 dementia-free participants from UK Biobank and explored the relationship between age at stroke onset and incident dementia. Among 8328 participants with stroke history, we further investigated the association of a healthy lifestyle with risk of dementia.

Results: Participants with stroke history had a higher risk of dementia (hazard ratio [HR], 2.02). The association was stronger among participants with stroke onset at a younger age (≤50: HR, 2.63) compared with those at the age > 50 years (50-60: HR, 2.17; ≥60: HR, 1.58). Among participants with stroke history, a favorable lifestyle was associated with a lower risk of incident dementia.

Discussion: Stroke onset in earlier life stage predicted a higher risk for dementia, but a favorable post-stroke lifestyle may protect against dementia.