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Association of Left Ventricular Function With Cerebral Small Vessel Disease and Cognition
Jiannan Huang, Vidishaa Jali, Caroline Robert, Christopher Chen, Lingli Gong, Eugene S.J. Tan, Mark Richards, Lieng‐Hsi Ling et al.. Journal of the American Heart Association, 2026-04-16
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
A total of 261 patients (75.3±6.8 years) were recruited from a memory-clinic cohort. LV function measures were associated with CSVD markers, with LV ejection fraction, average mitral inflow early-diastolic velocity/annular early-diastolic velocity, and tricuspid regurgitation velocity related to cortical cerebral microinfarcts, global longitudinal strain and mitral inflow early-diastolic velocity/late-diastolic velocity associated with lacunes, and impaired systolic function associated with white matter hyperintensities. Furthermore, LV systolic dysfunction was associated with lower global cognitive scores (β, -1.05 [95% CI, -1.76 to -0.34]) and increased odds of vascular cognitive impairment (OR, 7.91 [95% CI, 2.26-32.14]). CSVD markers mediated 22.5% of the association between systolic dysfunction and global cognition. In a memory-clinic population, significant associations were identified between LV function measures, CSVD markers, and cognition. The relationship between LV systolic function and global cognition was mediated by CSVD markers, suggesting the role of vascular pathologies in the heart-cognition connection.
Key findings
- A total of 261 patients (75.3±6.8 years) were recruited from a memory-clinic cohort.
- LV function measures were associated with CSVD markers, with LV ejection fraction, average mitral inflow early-diastolic velocity/annular early-diastolic velocity, and tricuspid regurgitation velocity related to cortical cerebral microinfarcts, global longitudinal strain and mitral inflow early-diastolic velocity/late-diastolic velocity associated with lacunes, and impaired systolic function associated with white matter hyperintensities.
- Furthermore, LV systolic dysfunction was associated with lower global cognitive scores (β, -1.05 [95% CI, -1.76 to -0.34]) and increased odds of vascular cognitive impairment (OR, 7.91 [95% CI, 2.26-32.14]).
- CSVD markers mediated 22.5% of the association between systolic dysfunction and global cognition.
- In a memory-clinic population, significant associations were identified between LV function measures, CSVD markers, and cognition.
Why it matters
In a memory-clinic population, worse left ventricular heart function was associated with more cerebral small vessel disease markers and lower cognitive scores. This was a cross-sectional study, so it cannot show that improving heart function would prevent or treat cognitive decline.
Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Participants261
- Effect size22.5%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 53/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of the American Heart Association) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Journal of the American Heart Association: journal h-index 200 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 4 / 12 | A snapshot of people at one point in time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 261 participants |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| 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 | 1 / 7 | Cited 2 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 1 / 5 | 1.0 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 9.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 2 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Saima Hilal: h-index 54 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | National University of Singapore: institution h-index 1,166 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 41988974) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 53 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1161/jaha.125.045947
- PubMed: 41988974
- Original source →
- Free full text: Journal of the American Heart Association →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Huang, J., Jali, V., Robert, C., Chen, C., Gong, L., Tan, E. S., et al. (2026). Association of Left Ventricular Function With Cerebral Small Vessel Disease and Cognition. Journal of the American Heart Association. https://doi.org/10.1161/jaha.125.045947
Vancouver
Huang J, Jali V, Robert C, Chen C, Gong L, Tan ES, et al. Association of Left Ventricular Function With Cerebral Small Vessel Disease and Cognition. Journal of the American Heart Association. 2026. doi:10.1161/jaha.125.045947. PMID: 41988974.
BibTeX
@article{huang2026-41988974,
author = {Huang, Jiannan and Jali, Vidishaa and Robert, Caroline and Chen, Christopher and Gong, Lingli and Tan, Eugene S.J. and Richards, Mark and Ling, Lieng‐Hsi and others},
title = {{Association of Left Ventricular Function With Cerebral Small Vessel Disease and Cognition}},
journal = {Journal of the American Heart Association},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.1161/jaha.125.045947},
pmid = {41988974},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1161/jaha.125.045947}
}
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