Elevated Blood Pressure: A Genetically Determined Risk Factor for Cerebral Artery Dissection

Objectives: We aim to investigate the potential causal link between blood pressure (BP) levels and cerebral artery dissection (CAD) risk employing a two-sample Mendelian randomization (TSMR) framework. Methods Utilizing large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS)-retrieved data, we employed various MR techniques, including inverse variance weighted (IVW), MR-Egger regression, weighted median, and weighted mode, to ascertain BP's causal impact on CAD. The MR-Egger intercept was calculated to assess pleiotropy presence, determining heterogeneity by Cochran's Q statistic. Results The findings highlighted a significant association between elevated systolic BP (SBP; IVW: OR = 3.09, 95% CI: 1.11–8.61, p  = 0.031) and increased diastolic BP (DBP; IVW: OR = 2.17, 95% CI: 1.14–6.21, p  = 0.023) with CAD risk. Sensitivity analyses reinforced the robustness and reliability of these results. Conclusions The results from this TSMR study suggest a causal link between high SBP and DBP and the increased likelihood of CAD, underscoring the importance of effective BP control.