Methods of treating subjects with age-related cognitive decline with a rho kinase inhibitor are disclosed. In a preferred embodiment, the rho kinase inhibitor is fasudil and it is administered orally in a daily dose of between 70 and 250 mg per day. Subjects have a cognitive impairment on a global cognitive scale, like the MoCA or the MMSE and/or specific impairments related to different cognitive domains. A method of reducing the rate of age-related cognitive decline, comprising administering to a subject with evidence of age-related cognitive decline an effective amount of a rho kinase inhibitor. The inventive methods slow the rate of cognitive decline and/or improve cognition from baseline in treated individuals. The methods may result in enhancing processing speed, increasing attention, improving memory, improving language, improving visual construction skills and/or improving executive function in subjects experiencing age-related cognitive decline.