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Lithium Therapy's Potential to Lower Dementia Risk and the Prevalence of Alzheimer's Disease: A Meta-Analysis
Qiuying Lu, Huijing Lv, Xiaotong Liu, Lili Zang, Yue Zhang, Qinghui Meng. European neurology, 2024-04-24
Topic: Drug trials: efficacy and safety
A total of seven studies were included. The forest plot results showed that taking lithium therapy reduced the risk of AD (RR 0.59, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.44-0.78) and is also protective in reducing the risk of dementia (RR 0.66, 95% CI: 0.56-0.77). The duration of lithium therapy was able to affect dementia incidence (RR 0.70, 95% CI: 0.55-0.88); however, it is unclear how this effect might manifest in AD. It is also uncertain how many prescriptions for lithium treatment lower the chance of dementia development. The duration of treatment and the usage of lithium therapy seem to lower the risk of AD and postpone the onset of dementia.
Key findings
- The forest plot results showed that taking lithium therapy reduced the risk of AD (RR 0.59, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.44-0.78) and is also protective in reducing the risk of dementia (RR 0.66, 95% CI: 0.56-0.77).
- The duration of lithium therapy was able to affect dementia incidence (RR 0.70, 95% CI: 0.55-0.88); however, it is unclear how this effect might manifest in AD.
- It is also uncertain how many prescriptions for lithium treatment lower the chance of dementia development.
- The duration of treatment and the usage of lithium therapy seem to lower the risk of AD and postpone the onset of dementia.
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Study details
- Study designmeta-analysis
- Effect sizeRR 0.59; RR 0.66; RR 0.70
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 77/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a meta-analysis pooling many studies. Scored zero for sample size and studied in people because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record, multi-centre collaboration and free to read, so those were left out: it earned 43 of the 56 points we could judge it on, which is 77 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (European neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 12 / 12 | A meta-analysis pooling many studies |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 4 / 5 | 2024 — within 3 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 | 3 / 3 | Effect reported with a statistic (interval, p-value, ratio or similar) |
| 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 | A review of other studies — randomisation is not credited here |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| 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 | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 38657568) |
| Free to read | — / 2 | Access not recorded — left out of this score |
| Points | 43 / 56 | Scored on 10 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 43 of the 56 points we could judge it on is 77 out of 100. |
| Total | 77 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
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APA 7th
Lu, Q., Lv, H., Liu, X., Zang, L., Zhang, Y., & Meng, Q. (2024). Lithium Therapy's Potential to Lower Dementia Risk and the Prevalence of Alzheimer's Disease: A Meta-Analysis. European neurology. https://doi.org/10.1159/000538846
Vancouver
Lu Q, Lv H, Liu X, Zang L, Zhang Y, Meng Q. Lithium Therapy's Potential to Lower Dementia Risk and the Prevalence of Alzheimer's Disease: A Meta-Analysis. European neurology. 2024. doi:10.1159/000538846. PMID: 38657568.
BibTeX
@article{lu2024-38657568,
author = {Lu, Qiuying and Lv, Huijing and Liu, Xiaotong and Zang, Lili and Zhang, Yue and Meng, Qinghui},
title = {{Lithium Therapy's Potential to Lower Dementia Risk and the Prevalence of Alzheimer's Disease: A Meta-Analysis}},
journal = {European neurology},
year = {2024},
doi = {10.1159/000538846},
pmid = {38657568},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1159/000538846}
}
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