Post-traumatic stress 'could increase dementia risk'
In an article for the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, doctors at the Veterans Association Medical Center in Texas found that former soldiers with a history of PTSD were twice as likely to be diagnosed with dementia in later life.
PTSD includes a variety of symptoms that remind the individual of the stressful event, such as sleep problems and nightmares, as well as mood swings.
The study was comprehensive, observing more than 10,000 former soldiers over a ten-year period.
"It will be important to determine which veterans with PTSD are at greatest risk [of developing dementia] and to determine whether PTSD induced by situations other than war injury is also associated with greater risk," said senior author of the article Dr Michael DeBakey.
The Alzheimer's Research Trust estimates that there are more than 820,000 people in the UK living with some form of dementia.
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