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Cerebral blood flow in normal aging adults: cardiovascular determinants, clinical implications, and aerobic fitness
Tarumi T, Zhang R.. Journal of neurochemistry, 2017-11-07
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Senescence is a leading cause of mortality, disability, and non-communicable chronic diseases in older adults. Mounting evidence indicates that the presence of cardiovascular disease and risk factors elevates the incidence of both vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Age-related declines in cardiovascular function may impair cerebral blood flow (CBF) regulation, leading to the disruption of neuronal micro-environmental homeostasis. The brain is the most metabolically active organ with limited intracellular energy storage and critically depends on CBF to sustain neuronal metabolism. In patients with AD, cerebral hypoperfusion, increased CBF pulsatility, and impaired blood pressure control during orthostatic stress have been reported, indicating exaggerated, age-related decline in both cerebro- and cardiovascular function. Currently, AD lacks effective treatments; therefore, the development of preventive strategy is urgently needed. Regular aerobic exercise improves cardiovascular function, which in turn may lead to a better CBF regulation, thus reducing the dementia risk. In this review, we discuss the effects of aging on cardiovascular regulation of CBF and provide new insights into the vascular mechanisms of cognitive impairment and potential effects of aerobic exercise training on CBF regulation. This article is part of the Special Issue "Vascular Dementia".
Key findings
- Mounting evidence indicates that the presence of cardiovascular disease and risk factors elevates the incidence of both vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Why it matters
This review reports that cardiovascular disease and risk factors raise the incidence of vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease, and that age-related declines in cardiovascular function may impair cerebral blood flow regulation. It suggests regular aerobic exercise may improve cardiovascular function and cerebral blood flow regulation, but this is a proposed preventive strategy, not a proven treatment.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 46/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of neurochemistry) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Journal of Neurochemistry: journal h-index 349 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2018 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 279 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 27.9 citations a year over 10 year(s) since 2018 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 7.6× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 103 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Rong Zhang: h-index 58 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center: institution h-index 1,356 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 28986925) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 46 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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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. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Tarumi, T., & Zhang, R. (2018). Cerebral blood flow in normal aging adults: cardiovascular determinants, clinical implications, and aerobic fitness. Journal of neurochemistry. https://doi.org/10.1111/jnc.14234
Vancouver
Tarumi T, Zhang R. Cerebral blood flow in normal aging adults: cardiovascular determinants, clinical implications, and aerobic fitness. Journal of neurochemistry. 2018. doi:10.1111/jnc.14234. PMID: 28986925.
BibTeX
@article{tarumi2018-28986925,
author = {Tarumi, T. and Zhang, R.},
title = {{Cerebral blood flow in normal aging adults: cardiovascular determinants, clinical implications, and aerobic fitness}},
journal = {Journal of neurochemistry},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1111/jnc.14234},
pmid = {28986925},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/jnc.14234}
}
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