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Accelerometer-Derived Relative Amplitude and Midlife Cognition: A Cross-Sectional Study
Kim, M.; Bonham, M.; Yeh, F.; Arredondo, M.; Opsasnick, L.; Curtis, L.; Bailey, S. C.; Benavente et al.. medRxiv (preprint), 2026-09-16
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
ImportanceLower relative amplitude of the rest-activity pattern has been associated with cognitive decline and incident dementia in older adults, but its relationship with domain-specific cognitive performance during midlife is less well characterized. ResultsIn the final adjusted model, each 1-SD lower relative amplitude was associated with a 2.27-point lower Fluid Cognition Composite T-score (95% CI, 1.15-3.40). Lower relative amplitude was also associated with lower attention by 2.74 points (95% CI, 1.49-4.00), executive function by 1.49 points (95% CI, 0.51-2.47), episodic memory by 2.03 points (95% CI, 0.81-3.25), and processing speed by 1.56 points (95% CI, 0.49-2.64). Relative amplitude was not associated with working memory or crystallized cognitive outcomes. Conclusions and RelevanceAmong midlife adults recruited from primary care practices, lower relative amplitude was associated with modestly poorer fluid cognitive performance after adjustment for established dementia risk factors and sleep characteristics. Key PointsO_ST_ABSQuestionC_ST_ABSAmong midlife adults, is lower accelerometer-derived relative amplitude associated with poorer cognitive performance? FindingsIn this cross-sectional study of 851 adults aged 35-64 years recruited from primary care practices, each 1-SD lower relative amplitude was associated with a 2.27-point (0.23 SD) lower Fluid Cognition Composite T-score. Lower relative amplitude was also associated with poorer attention, executive function, episodic memory, and processing speed, but not working memory or crystallized cognition.
Key findings
- ImportanceLower relative amplitude of the rest-activity pattern has been associated with cognitive decline and incident dementia in older adults, but its relationship with domain-specific cognitive performance during midlife is less well characterized.
- ResultsIn the final adjusted model, each 1-SD lower relative amplitude was associated with a 2.27-point lower Fluid Cognition Composite T-score (95% CI, 1.15-3.40).
- Lower relative amplitude was also associated with lower attention by 2.74 points (95% CI, 1.49-4.00), executive function by 1.49 points (95% CI, 0.51-2.47), episodic memory by 2.03 points (95% CI, 0.81-3.25), and processing speed by 1.56 points (95% CI, 0.49-2.64).
- Relative amplitude was not associated with working memory or crystallized cognitive outcomes.
- Conclusions and RelevanceAmong midlife adults recruited from primary care practices, lower relative amplitude was associated with modestly poorer fluid cognitive performance after adjustment for established dementia risk factors and sleep characteristics.
Why it matters
In this cross-sectional study of 851 midlife adults, lower relative amplitude of the rest-activity pattern was linked to modestly poorer performance on some cognitive tests. Because it only looked at one point in time, it cannot show whether this pattern causes cognitive decline or whether changing it would help.
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Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Participants851
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 16/100
Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. It scored 34 on the same rubric, but non-peer-reviewed sources are capped at 16, so it shows as 16. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on impact for its field and year, so that was left out: it earned 32 of the 94 points we could judge it on, which is 34 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 2 / 10 | Tier 4 — not a peer-reviewed journal (medRxiv (preprint)) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Not a journal article, so the journal's record does not count |
| Study design | 4 / 12 | A snapshot of people at one point in time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 4 / 10 | Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. Hosted on a preprint server. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 851 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 0 / 7 | Cited 0 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.0 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 0 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Phyllis C. Zee: h-index 96 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Northwestern University: institution h-index 1,592 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 1 / 2 | Not in PubMed, but has a DOI |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Points | 32 / 94 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 32 of the 94 points we could judge it on is 34 out of 100. |
| Total | 34 / 100 | Capped to 16 because this is not a peer-reviewed article. |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Kim, M., Bonham, M., Yeh, F., Arredondo, M., Opsasnick, L., Curtis, L., et al. (2026). Accelerometer-Derived Relative Amplitude and Midlife Cognition: A Cross-Sectional Study. medRxiv (preprint). https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.09.15.26361208
Vancouver
Kim M, Bonham M, Yeh F, Arredondo M, Opsasnick L, Curtis L, et al. Accelerometer-Derived Relative Amplitude and Midlife Cognition: A Cross-Sectional Study. medRxiv (preprint). 2026. doi:10.64898/2026.09.15.26361208.
BibTeX
@article{kim2026-3f411cda,
author = {Kim, M. and Bonham, M. and Yeh, F. and Arredondo, M. and Opsasnick, L. and Curtis, L. and Bailey, S. C. and Benavente and others},
title = {{Accelerometer-Derived Relative Amplitude and Midlife Cognition: A Cross-Sectional Study}},
journal = {medRxiv (preprint)},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.15.26361208},
url = {https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.09.15.26361208}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.