Does atrial fibrillation cause cognitive decline and dementia?

You'll have to have your doctor fix your AF and prevent your cognitive decline and dementia.
Or is the problem that fixing AF causes decline and dementia? Cause and effect analysis needed.
https://www.mdlinx.com/internal-medicine/medical-news-article/2017/04/26/atrial-fibrillation-dementia-alzheimer-s-disease/7127317/?

EP Europace

Dietzel J, et al.

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Researchers assessed the impact of atrial fibrillation (AF) on cognitive function. They gathered and summarized the published literature data on the association between AF and cognitive decline and found evidence supporting the notion that AF independently confers risk for cognitive decline and dementia in general and for Alzheimer’s disease in particular. The possible mechanisms involved were: AF–related ischaemic stroke, white matter damage and systemic inflammation.