A history of stroke predisposes towards progressive memory problems, according to a new study.

Risk factors for stroke also tend to raise the risk of dementia which, in turn, causes memory problems. What is less clear is whether stroke without dementia is also linked with memory loss. A team at Columbia University, New York, studied 1,271 patients and assessed their cognitive status at eighteen month intervals. At the start, 7.6 per cent of the patients had a history of stroke.

All participants in the study had some memory decline over time but this proved to be more pronounced among those with a stroke history. The link was stronger among men and was also dependent on ApoE, a gene that has links to dementia. There was also some decline in abstract and visuospatial ability among those with a history of stroke. The researchers don't know exactly how stroke might lead to cognitive decline. Maybe stroke-related brain damage actually triggers the formation of the plaque deposits that are linked to dementia. Or it may accelerate cognitive decline among those who already have pre-clinical dementia.

Source
Archives of Neurology April 2006 Volume 63 pages 571-576