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Relative frequencies of Alzheimer disease, Lewy body, vascular and frontotemporal dementia, and hippocampal sclerosis in the State of Florida Brain Bank
Barker WW, Luis CA, Kashuba A, Luis M, Harwood DG, Loewenstein D, Waters C, Jimison P et al.. Alzheimer disease and associated disorders, 2002-10-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common dementing illness in the elderly, but there is equivocal evidence regarding the frequency of other disorders such as Lewy body disease (LBD), vascular dementia (VaD), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and hippocampal sclerosis (HS). This ambiguity may be related to factors such as the age and gender of subjects with dementia. Therefore, the objective of this study was to calculate the relative frequencies of AD, LBD, VaD, FTD, and HS among 382 subjects with dementia from the State of Florida Brain Bank and to study the effect of age and gender on these frequencies. AD was the most frequent pathologic finding (77%), followed by LBD (26%), VaD (18%), HS (13%), and FTD (5%). Mixed pathology was common: Concomitant AD was present in 66% of LBD patients, 77% of VaD patients, and 66% of HS patients. The relative frequency of VaD increased with age, whereas the relative frequencies of FTD and LBD declined with age. Males were overrepresented among those with LBD, whereas females were overrepresented among AD subjects with onset age over 70 years. These estimates of the a priori probabilities of dementing disorders have implications for clinicians and researchers.
Key findings
- AD was the most frequent pathologic finding (77%), followed by LBD (26%), VaD (18%), HS (13%), and FTD (5%).
- Mixed pathology was common: Concomitant AD was present in 66% of LBD patients, 77% of VaD patients, and 66% of HS patients.
- The relative frequency of VaD increased with age, whereas the relative frequencies of FTD and LBD declined with age.
- Males were overrepresented among those with LBD, whereas females were overrepresented among AD subjects with onset age over 70 years.
- These estimates of the a priori probabilities of dementing disorders have implications for clinicians and researchers.
Why it matters
In 382 people with dementia whose brains were examined at the State of Florida Brain Bank, Alzheimer's disease was found in 77%, Lewy body disease in 26%, vascular dementia in 18%, hippocampal sclerosis in 13% and frontotemporal dementia in 5%. These overlap because many brains had more than one: Alzheimer's changes were also present in 66% of Lewy body, 77% of vascular and 66% of hippocampal sclerosis cases. Vascular dementia was relatively more common at older ages and frontotemporal and Lewy body disease less common. These are autopsy frequencies from one brain bank, not population rates or personal risk, and no treatment was tested.
Study details
- Participants382
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 54/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Alzheimer disease and associated disorders) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Alzheimer Disease & Associated Disorders: journal h-index 131 (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 | 2002 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 382 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 | 6 / 7 | Cited 707 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 27.2 citations a year over 26 year(s) since 2002 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 8.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 4 / 6 | Cited by 50 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 84 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Ranjan Duara: h-index 99 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Florida: institution h-index 1,303 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 9 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 12468894) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 54 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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APA 7th
Barker, W. W., Luis, C. A., Kashuba, A., Luis, M., Harwood, D. G., Loewenstein, D., et al. (2002). Relative frequencies of Alzheimer disease, Lewy body, vascular and frontotemporal dementia, and hippocampal sclerosis in the State of Florida Brain Bank. Alzheimer disease and associated disorders. https://doi.org/10.1097/00002093-200210000-00001
Vancouver
Barker WW, Luis CA, Kashuba A, Luis M, Harwood DG, Loewenstein D, et al. Relative frequencies of Alzheimer disease, Lewy body, vascular and frontotemporal dementia, and hippocampal sclerosis in the State of Florida Brain Bank. Alzheimer disease and associated disorders. 2002. doi:10.1097/00002093-200210000-00001. PMID: 12468894.
BibTeX
@article{barker2002-12468894,
author = {Barker, W. W. and Luis, C. A. and Kashuba, A. and Luis, M. and Harwood, D. G. and Loewenstein, D. and Waters, C. and Jimison, P. and others},
title = {{Relative frequencies of Alzheimer disease, Lewy body, vascular and frontotemporal dementia, and hippocampal sclerosis in the State of Florida Brain Bank}},
journal = {Alzheimer disease and associated disorders},
year = {2002},
doi = {10.1097/00002093-200210000-00001},
pmid = {12468894},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1097/00002093-200210000-00001}
}
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