Age and HF Linked to Memory Loss, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center Study

Older people with a reduced left ventricular ejection fraction have significant memory impairments, compared with their younger counterparts, researchers reported. In a retrospective study, younger heart failure patients had stable memory regardless of their left ventricular ejection fraction, according to Joanne Festa, PhD, of St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City, and colleagues. But those older than 63 had significant declines – mainly in verbal memory – when their left ventricular ejection fraction fell below 30%, Festa and colleagues reported in the August issue of Archives of Neurology.