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Association of plasma beta-amyloid level and cognitive reserve with subsequent cognitive decline
Yaffe K, Weston A, Graff-Radford NR, Satterfield S, Simonsick EM, Younkin SG, Younkin LH, Kuller L et al.. JAMA, 2011-01-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Context Lower plasma β-amyloid 42 and 42/40 levels have been associated with incident dementia, but results are conflicting and few have investigated cognitive decline among elders without dementia. Objective To determine if plasma β-amyloid is associated with cognitive decline and if this association is modified by measures of cognitive reserve. Design, setting, and participants We studied 997 black and white community-dwelling older adults from Memphis, Tennessee, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who were enrolled in the Health ABC Study, a prospective observational study begun in 1997-1998 with 10-year follow-up in 2006-2007. Participant mean age was 74.0 (SD, 3.0) years; 55.2% (n = 550) were female; and 54.0% (n = 538) were black. Main outcome measures Association of near-baseline plasma β-amyloid levels (42 and 42/40 measured in 2010) and repeatedly measured Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MS) results. Results Low β-amyloid 42/40 level was associated with greater 9-year 3MS cognitive decline (lowest β-amyloid tertile: mean change in 3MS score, -6.59 [95% confidence interval [CI], -5.21 to -7.67] points; middle tertile: -6.16 [95% CI, -4.92 to -7.32] points; and highest tertile: -3.60 [95% CI, -2.27 to -4.73] points; P Conclusion Lower plasma β-amyloid 42/40 is associated with greater cognitive decline among elderly persons without dementia over 9 years, and this association is stronger among those with low measures of cognitive reserve.
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APA 7th
Yaffe, K., Weston, A., Graff-Radford, N. R., Satterfield, S., Simonsick, E. M., Younkin, S. G., et al. (2011). Association of plasma beta-amyloid level and cognitive reserve with subsequent cognitive decline. JAMA. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2010.1995
Vancouver
Yaffe K, Weston A, Graff-Radford NR, Satterfield S, Simonsick EM, Younkin SG, et al. Association of plasma beta-amyloid level and cognitive reserve with subsequent cognitive decline. JAMA. 2011. doi:10.1001/jama.2010.1995. PMID: 21245181.
BibTeX
@article{yaffe2011-21245181,
author = {Yaffe, K. and Weston, A. and Graff-Radford, N. R. and Satterfield, S. and Simonsick, E. M. and Younkin, S. G. and Younkin, L. H. and Kuller, L. and others},
title = {{Association of plasma beta-amyloid level and cognitive reserve with subsequent cognitive decline}},
journal = {JAMA},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.1001/jama.2010.1995},
pmid = {21245181},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2010.1995}
}
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Key findings
- Context Lower plasma β-amyloid 42 and 42/40 levels have been associated with incident dementia, but results are conflicting and few have investigated cognitive decline among elders without dementia.
- Objective To determine if plasma β-amyloid is associated with cognitive decline and if this association is modified by measures of cognitive reserve.
- Main outcome measures Association of near-baseline plasma β-amyloid levels (42 and 42/40 measured in 2010) and repeatedly measured Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MS) results.
- Results Low β-amyloid 42/40 level was associated with greater 9-year 3MS cognitive decline (lowest β-amyloid tertile: mean change in 3MS score, -6.59 [95% confidence interval [CI], -5.21 to -7.67] points; middle tertile: -6.16 [95% CI, -4.92 to -7.32] points; and highest tertile: -3.60 [95% CI, -2.27 to -4.73] points; P < .001).
Why it matters
In older adults without dementia, lower plasma beta-amyloid 42/40 was associated with greater cognitive decline over 9 years, and this association was modified by measures of cognitive reserve. This describes a possible marker of future decline; it does not show that measuring or changing plasma beta-amyloid treats, cures, or prevents Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Participants550
- Effect size55.2%; 54.0%
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 60/100
Published in a top-tier journal. Scored zero for study design and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 10 / 10 | Tier 1 — top-tier general journal (JAMA) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | JAMA: journal h-index 1,011 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2011 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 550 participants |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 244 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 14.4 citations a year over 17 year(s) since 2011 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 18.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 16 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 27 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Kristine S. Yaffe: h-index 155 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California, San Francisco: institution h-index 1,915 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 8 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 21245181) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 60 / 100 | — |
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