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Cognitive function in patients with diabetes mellitus: guidance for daily care
Koekkoek PS, Kappelle LJ, van den Berg E, Rutten GE, Biessels GJ.. The Lancet. Neurology, 2015-02-16
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Diabetes mellitus is associated with an increase in the risk of dementia and the proportion of patients who convert from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to dementia. In addition to MCI and dementia, the stages of diabetes-associated cognitive dysfunction include subtle cognitive changes that are unlikely to affect activities of daily life or diabetes self-management. These diabetes-associated cognitive decrements have structural brain correlates detectable with brain MRI, but usually show little progression over time. Although cognitive decrements do not generally represent a pre-dementia stage in patients below the age of 60-65 years, in older individuals these subtle cognitive changes might represent the earliest stages of a dementia process. Acknowledgment of diabetes-associated cognitive decrements can help to improve understanding of patients' symptoms and guide management. Future challenges are to establish the importance of screening for cognitive impairment in people with diabetes, to identify those at increased risk of accelerated cognitive decline at an early stage, and to develop effective treatments.
Key findings
- Diabetes mellitus is associated with an increase in the risk of dementia and the proportion of patients who convert from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to dementia.
- Future challenges are to establish the importance of screening for cognitive impairment in people with diabetes, to identify those at increased risk of accelerated cognitive decline at an early stage, and to develop effective treatments.
Why it matters
This review states that diabetes mellitus is associated with an increased risk of dementia and a greater proportion of patients converting from mild cognitive impairment to dementia. It notes that future challenges are to establish the importance of screening for cognitive impairment in people with diabetes and to develop effective treatments.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 52/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (The Lancet. Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | The Lancet Neurology: journal h-index 457 (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 | 2015 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 394 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 30.3 citations a year over 13 year(s) since 2015 |
| Impact for its field and year | 5 / 6 | Cited 21.1× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 9 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 117 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Geert Jan Biessels: h-index 105 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Utrecht University: institution h-index 1,157 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 25728442) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 52 / 100 | — |
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Koekkoek, P. S., Kappelle, L. J., van den Berg, E., Rutten, G. E., & Biessels, G. J. (2015). Cognitive function in patients with diabetes mellitus: guidance for daily care. The Lancet. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1474-4422(14)70249-2
Vancouver
Koekkoek PS, Kappelle LJ, van den Berg E, Rutten GE, Biessels GJ. Cognitive function in patients with diabetes mellitus: guidance for daily care. The Lancet. Neurology. 2015. doi:10.1016/s1474-4422(14)70249-2. PMID: 25728442.
BibTeX
@article{koekkoek2015-25728442,
author = {Koekkoek, P. S. and Kappelle, L. J. and van den Berg, E. and Rutten, G. E. and Biessels, G. J.},
title = {{Cognitive function in patients with diabetes mellitus: guidance for daily care}},
journal = {The Lancet. Neurology},
year = {2015},
doi = {10.1016/s1474-4422(14)70249-2},
pmid = {25728442},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/s1474-4422(14)70249-2}
}
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