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A Study on the Association Between the Course of Heart Failure and Cognitive Function in Older Adults: Based on Data from the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
Ren W, Hu X, Feng J, Zhang H, Wang T.. Research Square, 2026-09-02
Topic: Brain imaging, connectivity and assessment
Background Heart failure (HF), a highly prevalent chronic and progressive cardiovascular disease worldwide, is characterized by high incidence, high mortality, and high readmission rates, placing a heavy burden on patients’ families and the healthcare system.Clinically, the treatment and management of HF often focus on improving cardiac function and preventing adverse cardiovascular outcomes; however, cognitive impairment (CI)—a common complication of HF—is frequently overlooked in clinical practice.Although existing evidence confirms an association between HF and CI, there remain significant gaps in current research regarding the dose-response relationship between duration of HF (HFD) and cognitive performance, population-specific differences (such as age at onset), and potential underlying mechanisms; relevant analyses have not yet been sufficiently in-depth or systematic. Results The 2,885 participants had a mean age of 69.5 years. Logistic regression analysis was performed on 172 cases with valid data, revealing a marginally significant association between the duration of heart failure and the risk of cognitive impairment as assessed by the DSST (OR = 1.043, 95% CI: 0.999–1.090, P = 0.054) and was significantly associated with the risk of memory impairment as assessed by CERAD (OR = 1.040, 95% CI: 1.002–1.080, P = 0.044), and was not significantly associated with the risk of language fluency impairment as assessed by the AFT (OR = 1.023, 95% CI: 0.978–1.068, P = 0.314).; The absence of diabetes reduces the risk of cognitive impairment as assessed by the DSST.Duration-response analysis showed that the duration of heart failure was significantly positively correlated with cognitive impairment as assessed by all three scales (r = 0.182, 0.156, 0.215; P < 0.05).Subgroup analysis showed that, among patients aged 60–71 years, the duration of heart failure was positively correlated only with the DSST score (r = 0.319, P < 0.05), whereas among patients aged ≥ 72 years, it was positively correlated with both the CERAD and AFT scores (r = 0.219, 0.277, P < 0.05). This finding suggests that clinical management targeting the progression of HF may have potential value in protecting cognitive function; however, longitudinal studies are needed to further verify the causal relationship.
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APA 7th
Ren, W., Hu, X., Feng, J., Zhang, H., & Wang, T. (2026). A Study on the Association Between the Course of Heart Failure and Cognitive Function in Older Adults: Based on Data from the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Research Square. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-10797357/v1
Vancouver
Ren W, Hu X, Feng J, Zhang H, Wang T. A Study on the Association Between the Course of Heart Failure and Cognitive Function in Older Adults: Based on Data from the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Research Square. 2026. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-10797357/v1.
BibTeX
@article{ren2026-670ffd81,
author = {Ren, W. and Hu, X. and Feng, J. and Zhang, H. and Wang, T.},
title = {{A Study on the Association Between the Course of Heart Failure and Cognitive Function in Older Adults: Based on Data from the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey}},
journal = {Research Square},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.21203/rs.3.rs-10797357/v1},
url = {https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-10797357/v1}
}
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Key findings
- Background Heart failure (HF), a highly prevalent chronic and progressive cardiovascular disease worldwide, is characterized by high incidence, high mortality, and high readmission rates, placing a heavy burden on patients’ families and the healthcare system.Clinically, the treatment and management of HF often focus on improving cardiac function and preventing adverse cardiovascular outcomes; however, cognitive impairment (CI)—a common complication of HF—is frequently overlooked in clinical practice.Although existing evidence confirms an association between HF and CI, there remain significant gaps in current research regarding the dose-response relationship between duration of HF (HFD) and cognitive performance, population-specific differences (such as age at onset), and potential underlying mechanisms; relevant analyses have not yet been sufficiently in-depth or systematic.
- Results The 2,885 participants had a mean age of 69.5 years.
- Logistic regression analysis was performed on 172 cases with valid data, revealing a marginally significant association between the duration of heart failure and the risk of cognitive impairment as assessed by the DSST (OR = 1.043, 95% CI: 0.999–1.090, P = 0.054) and was significantly associated with the risk of memory impairment as assessed by CERAD (OR = 1.040, 95% CI: 1.002–1.080, P = 0.044), and was not significantly associated with the risk of language fluency impairment as assessed by the AFT (OR = 1.023, 95% CI: 0.978–1.068, P = 0.314).; The absence of diabetes reduces the risk of cognitive impairment as assessed by the DSST.Duration-response analysis showed that the duration of heart failure was significantly positively correlated with cognitive impairment as assessed by all three scales (r = 0.182, 0.156, 0.215; P < 0.05).Subgroup analysis showed that, among patients aged 60–71 years, the duration of heart failure was positively correlated only with the DSST score (r = 0.319, P < 0.05), whereas among patients aged ≥ 72 years, it was positively correlated with both the CERAD and AFT scores (r = 0.219, 0.277, P < 0.05).
- This finding suggests that clinical management targeting the progression of HF may have potential value in protecting cognitive function; however, longitudinal studies are needed to further verify the causal relationship.
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Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Participants2,885
- Effect sizeOR = 1.043; OR = 1.040; OR = 1.023
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 16/100
Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. It scored 50 on the same rubric, but non-peer-reviewed sources are capped at 16, so it shows as 16. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 31 of the 62 points we could judge it on, which is 50 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 2 / 10 | Tier 4 — not a peer-reviewed journal (Research Square) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Not a journal article, so the journal's record does not count |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A longitudinal study following the same people over time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 4 / 10 | Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. Hosted on a preprint server. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 3 / 4 | 2,885 participants |
| Effect reported | 3 / 3 | Effect reported with a statistic (interval, p-value, ratio or similar) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 1 / 2 | Not in PubMed, but has a DOI |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 31 / 62 | Scored on 12 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 31 of the 62 points we could judge it on is 50 out of 100. |
| Total | 50 / 100 | Capped to 16 because this is not a peer-reviewed article. |
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