A new study has found that chronic kidney disease, or CKD, can speed up memory loss and other thinking problems—and it does so differently in men and women.
The research was published in the American Journal of Physiology—Heart and Circulatory Physiology. It shows how CKD can harm both the heart and the brain, and that the damage works in different ways depending on a person’s sex.
Scientists from Marshall University’s Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, along with experts from the National Institute on Aging at the U.S. National Institutes of Health, worked together on this study.
They wanted to understand how the kidney, heart, and brain interact in people with CKD, and how these interactions differ between men and women. The study included people living in rural areas and made sure to include equal numbers of men and women.
The researchers found that men with CKD had more serious problems with memory and thinking skills than women with the same condition. They also had worse heart function. This suggests that, for men, the connection between the heart and brain may be more important in causing cognitive decline. In women, other factors may play a bigger role.
Dr. Sneha S. Pillai, the lead author of the study, explained that the body’s systems communicate differently in men and women. The way the kidney, heart, and brain affect each other is not the same across sexes. This new understanding could help doctors come up with more personalized ways to detect and treat these problems earlier.
Chronic kidney disease affects millions of people in the United States, but its link to memory loss is not well known, especially in rural and underserved communities. This study helps fill that gap by showing how CKD can lead to mental decline and why it’s important to consider whether a patient is male or female when planning treatment.
Dr. Komal Sodhi, the main researcher on the project, said that learning how heart problems and brain changes show up differently in men and women with CKD might lead to better treatments. These new findings could help prevent more serious conditions like dementia by catching problems sooner.
The study also involved heart and kidney experts, including Dr. Ellen Thompson and Dr. Zeid J. Khitan, who focused on the clinical side of the research. Their work helped connect the medical data with real-world patient experiences.
In summary, this study shows that CKD can speed up brain aging and memory loss, and that men and women are affected in different ways. With this new information, doctors may be able to create better, more targeted treatments for people with kidney disease—treatments that help protect both the heart and the brain before major damage occurs.
If you care about kidney health, please read studies about how to protect your kidneys from diabetes, and drinking coffee could help reduce risk of kidney injury.
For more information about kidney health, please see recent studies about foods that may prevent recurrence of kidney stones, and eating nuts linked to lower risk of chronic kidney disease and death.
Copyright © 2025 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
