This page is alzhub.org's plain-English summary of a published study, not the paper itself. It is generated from the record we hold for this study, sourced and linked below — check the original for the full text and methods.

74/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 74 out of 100. How common it is

Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis

Background Previous studies have suggested that the use of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may help to prevent Alzheimer's disease. The results, however, are inconsistent. Methods We studied the association between the use of NSAIDs and Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia in a prospective, population-based cohort study of 6989 subjects 55 years of age or older who were free of dementia at base line, in 1991. To detect new cases of dementia, follow-up screening was performed in 1993 and 1994 and again in 1997 through 1999. The risk of Alzheimer's disease was estimated in relation to the use of NSAIDs as documented in pharmacy records. We defined four mutually exclusive categories of use: nonuse, short-term use (1 month or less of cumulative use), intermediate-term use (more than 1 but less than 24 months of cumulative use), and long-term use (24 months or more of cumulative use). Adjustments were made by Cox regression analysis for age, sex, education, smoking status, and the use or nonuse of salicylates, histamine Hz-receptor antagonists, antihypertensive agents, and hypoglycemic agents. Results During an average follow-up period of 6.8 years, dementia developed in 394 subjects, of whom 293 had Alzheimer's disease, 56 vascular dementia, and 45 other types of dementia. The relative risk of Alzheimer's disease was 0.95 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.70 to 1.29) in subjects with short-term use of NSAIDs, 0.83 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.62 to 1.11) in those with intermediate-term use, and 0.20 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.05 to 0.83) in those with long-term use. The risk did not vary according to age. The use of NSAIDs was not associated with a reduction in the risk of vascular dementia. Conclusions The long-term use of NSAIDs may protect against Alzheimer's disease but not against vascular dementia.

Key findings

Background Previous studies have suggested that the use of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may help to prevent Alzheimer's disease.
Results During an average follow-up period of 6.8 years, dementia developed in 394 subjects, of whom 293 had Alzheimer's disease, 56 vascular dementia, and 45 other types of dementia.
The use of NSAIDs was not associated with a reduction in the risk of vascular dementia.

Why it matters

In 6,989 people aged 55 or older who were followed for an average of 6.8 years, those whose pharmacy records showed 24 months or more of NSAID use had a lower risk of Alzheimer's disease (relative risk 0.20, 95% CI 0.05 to 0.83). Shorter use showed no clear difference, and no NSAID use was linked to lower vascular-dementia risk. Because this is an observational study and the estimate is very imprecise, the authors say only that long-term use "may protect" against Alzheimer's disease; it does not show that taking NSAIDs prevents it.

New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Alzheimer's in numbers →

Study details

Study designcohort study
Participants6,989
Evidence strengthModerate

How this study scored 74/100

Published in a top-tier journal, and it is a cohort study following people over time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	10 / 10	Tier 1 — top-tier general journal (The New England journal of medicine)
Journal's citation record	4 / 4	New England Journal of Medicine: journal h-index 1,505 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	7 / 12	A cohort study following people over time
Strength of evidence	3 / 5	Rated “moderate” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	1 / 5	2001 — older than 20 years, still counted
Sample size	3 / 4	6,989 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	7 / 7	Cited 1,199 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	4 / 5	44.4 citations a year over 27 year(s) since 2001
Impact for its field and year	6 / 6	Cited 50.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	4 / 6	Cited by 51 other studies in this library
Still being cited	2 / 4	Cited 44 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	4 / 4	Last-listed author Bruno H. Ch. Stricker: h-index 125 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	3 / 3	National Institutes of Health: institution h-index 2,723 (OpenAlex)
Multi-centre collaboration	1 / 3	OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 2 countries
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 11794217)
Free to read	0 / 2	Behind a paywall — scores zero
Total	74 / 100	—

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).

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. The record names 8 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.

APA 7th

in t' Veld, B. A., Ruitenberg, A., Hofman, A., Launer, L. J., van Duijn, C. M., Stijnen, T., et al. (2001). Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and the risk of Alzheimer's disease. The New England journal of medicine. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa010178

Vancouver

in t' Veld BA, Ruitenberg A, Hofman A, Launer LJ, van Duijn CM, Stijnen T, et al. Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and the risk of Alzheimer's disease. The New England journal of medicine. 2001. doi:10.1056/nejmoa010178. PMID: 11794217.

BibTeX

@article{intveld2001-11794217,
  author  = {in t' Veld, B. A. and Ruitenberg, A. and Hofman, A. and Launer, L. J. and van Duijn, C. M. and Stijnen, T. and Breteler, M. M. and Stricker, B. H.},
  title   = {{Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and the risk of Alzheimer's disease}},
  journal = {The New England journal of medicine},
  year    = {2001},
  doi     = {10.1056/nejmoa010178},
  pmid    = {11794217},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa010178}
}

Studies this one cites

Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.

Later studies that cite this one

51 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references. Showing the 8 highest-scoring.

Related studies in How common it is

Also in How common it is

80 studies in the library are filed under How common it is with no topic tag they share with another; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed tour of them. The How common it is hub.

Similar studies

More on How common it is

See all studies in How common it is →