What leads to stroke and how it affects thinking and memory
Official title: Precursors of Stroke Incidence and Prognosis
Funded at Boston University Medical Campus · NIH-11178711 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project uses long-term heart and blood vessel health information to find who is more likely to have thinking problems or dementia after a stroke, focusing on Black and White adults.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Boston University Medical Campus NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | December 1, 1981 |
| Project end | August 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $1,456,892 |
| NIH project number | 5R01NS017950-40 |
| Project ID | NIH-11178711 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with a history of stroke, older adults with vascular risk factors (like obesity or high cholesterol), or participants in the Framingham, REGARDS, or ARIC cohorts—particularly Black and White adults—are the most relevant candidates.
✕Less likely to help
Young healthy people without vascular risk factors or those whose cognitive decline is driven by non-vascular causes may be unlikely to benefit directly from this project's findings.
What this research studies
From my view as a patient, the team is using decades of health records from large U.S. studies to trace how lifetime exposure to things like obesity and high cholesterol links to thinking problems after stroke. They will combine and compare data from Framingham, REGARDS, and ARIC to build and test risk tools that work in Black and White participants and include social factors. The researchers will use statistical and causal methods on these cohort records to see whether obesity or dyslipidemia directly raise the risk and whether existing drugs might be repurposed. Their goal is to create practical risk predictions and prevention ideas that clinicians could use before or after a stroke.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help clinicians identify people at high risk for cognitive decline after stroke and tailor prevention or treatment to reduce dementia risk.
How similar studies have gone: Prior cohort studies have linked vascular risk factors to dementia, but comprehensive, racially validated risk tools and clear causal evidence for obesity and dyslipidemia in post-stroke dementia remain limited.
Where this research is happening
-
Boston University Medical Campus
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Romero, Jose Rafael — Boston University Medical Campus
- Study coordinator: Romero, Jose Rafael
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Precursors of Stroke Incidence and Prognosis
This grant explores how life-long vascular risk factors and stroke-related brain changes influence the risk of cognitive problems, including Alzheimer’s-type dementia, in diverse adults.
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Determinants of Post-Stroke Cognitive Outcomes and Vascular Effects on Recovery
A large, multi-site effort aims to understand why some stroke survivors develop long-term cognitive problems and dementia, and how vascular health and pre-existing brain changes influence recovery.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.