Home › Research › Down syndrome and Alzheimer's
Detection of Alzheimer disease in individuals with Down syndrome
Nelson L, Lott I, Touchette P, Satz P, D'Elia L.. American journal of mental retardation : AJMR, 1995-05-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
A comprehensive baseline of emotional functioning was established for adults with Down syndrome. Five emotional factors were studied using groups of (a) adults with Down syndrome (n = 30), (b) clinical control subjects with dementia of the Alzheimer type (n = 18), and (c) elderly control subjects without mental retardation (n = 25). Results of planned statistical comparisons showed indifference, pragnosia, and inappropriateness as primary emotional factors separating Down syndrome and Alzheimer disease groups from elderly control subjects without mental retardation. Indifference was also shown to covary with cognitive mental state, whereby increased levels of indifference were associated with decreased levels of cognitive functioning. The possibility of noncognitive variables signalling dementia of the Alzheimer type in individuals with Down syndrome was discussed.
Key findings
- Results of planned statistical comparisons showed indifference, pragnosia, and inappropriateness as primary emotional factors separating Down syndrome and Alzheimer disease groups from elderly control subjects without mental retardation.
- Indifference was also shown to covary with cognitive mental state, whereby increased levels of indifference were associated with decreased levels of cognitive functioning.
Why it matters
This study compared emotional factors in adults with Down syndrome, people with Alzheimer-type dementia, and elderly controls, finding indifference, pragnosia and inappropriateness as distinguishing factors. It concerns emotional signs that may signal dementia, not any treatment, cure or prevention.
Study details
- Participants30
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 34/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record and senior author's track record, so those were left out: it earned 31 of the 92 points we could judge it on, which is 34 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (American journal of mental retardation : AJMR) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| 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 | 1995 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 30 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 | 3 / 7 | Cited 30 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.9 citations a year over 33 year(s) since 1995 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 2.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 1 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of California, Irvine: institution h-index 1,195 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 7632429) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 31 / 92 | Scored on 18 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 31 of the 92 points we could judge it on is 34 out of 100. |
| Total | 34 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
May need a subscription OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 6 Feb 1020), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. This record has no DOI, so the citation leaves it out. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Nelson, L., Lott, I., Touchette, P., Satz, P., & D'Elia, L. (1995). Detection of Alzheimer disease in individuals with Down syndrome. American journal of mental retardation : AJMR.
Vancouver
Nelson L, Lott I, Touchette P, Satz P, D'Elia L. Detection of Alzheimer disease in individuals with Down syndrome. American journal of mental retardation : AJMR. 1995. PMID: 7632429.
BibTeX
@article{nelson1995-7632429,
author = {Nelson, L. and Lott, I. and Touchette, P. and Satz, P. and D'Elia, L.},
title = {{Detection of Alzheimer disease in individuals with Down syndrome}},
journal = {American journal of mental retardation : AJMR},
year = {1995},
pmid = {7632429}
}
Related studies in Down syndrome and Alzheimer's
Also tagged “down”
527 studies in the library carry the topic tag “down”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 527 tagged studies.