Cardiovascular Disease Incidence and Risk Factors in Older Adults With Intellectual Disabilities: Results of the Healthy Ageing and Intellectual Disabilities Study.
Marleen J de Leeuw, Mylène N Böhmer, Patrick J E Bindels and 2 others
PMID 40598919WHAT IT FOUND
In older adults with intellectual disabilities, hypertension, Down syndrome and antipsychotic use were strongly linked to new cardiovascular events.
Heart failure and stroke occurred more often than in the general population, while heart attacks were less common.
Key findings
01Hypertension, Down syndrome and antipsychotic use were significantly associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease during follow-up.
02The incidence rate of heart failure was 7.2 per 1000 person-years and stroke was 5.3 per 1000 person-years, while myocardial infarction was 2.3 per 1000 person-years.
03Heart failure incidence was higher in this cohort than in the general population across most age groups, whereas myocardial infarction incidence was consistently lower.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The final sample of 598 participants represented a subgroup with greater support needs (older, more severe disabilities, more Down syndrome) than the original cohort, potentially underestimating cardiovascular incidence in more independent individuals. The number of cardiovascular events was small, leading to wide confidence intervals and limiting the ability to include all risk factors in the final analysis. Cardiovascular status was restricted to three major diagnostic categories (myocardial infarction, heart failure, stroke) based on medical records, which may have underestimated the overall burden of cardiovascular disease. The study could not include factors such as ethnicity, family history or certain clinical conditions in the analysis.
Declared interests
The study was conducted within the Healthy Ageing and Intellectual Disabilities (HA-ID) study. The text does not explicitly state funding sources or specific conflicts of interest declarations beyond the institutional affiliations and ethical approvals mentioned.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume these incidence rates apply to all adults with intellectual disabilities. The study sample had higher support needs and more severe disabilities than the excluded participants, so these findings may not reflect the cardiovascular risk of individuals with mild intellectual disabilities who live more independently.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →