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Weight loss and rapid cognitive decline in community-dwelling patients with Alzheimer's disease
Soto ME, Secher M, Gillette-Guyonnet S, Abellan van Kan G, Andrieu S, Nourhashemi F, Rolland Y, Vellas B.. Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD, 2012-01-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Weight loss is a frequent complication of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and a strong predictor of adverse outcomes in patients suffering from this disease. The aim of this study was to determine whether weight loss was a predictor of rapid cognitive decline (RCD) in AD. Four hundred fourteen community-dwelling ambulatory patients with a diagnosis of probable AD and a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score between 10 and 26 from the REAL.FR (REseau sur la maladie d'ALzheimer FRançais) cohort were studied and followed up during 4 years.
Key findings
- The aim of this study was to determine whether weight loss was a predictor of rapid cognitive decline (RCD) in AD.
- Four hundred fourteen community-dwelling ambulatory patients with a diagnosis of probable AD and a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score between 10 and 26 from the REAL.FR (REseau sur la maladie d'ALzheimer FRançais) cohort were studied and followed up during 4 years.
- Patients were classified in 2 groups according to weight loss defined by a loss of 4% or more during the first year of follow-up.
- RCD was defined as the loss of 3 points or more in MMSE over 6 months.
Why it matters
This study followed 414 community-dwelling patients with probable Alzheimer's disease for 4 years to see whether weight loss predicted rapid cognitive decline. The provided text does not report the results, so it is unknown whether weight loss was linked to faster decline.
Study details
- Effect size21.0%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 48/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Journal of Alzheimer s Disease: journal h-index 218 (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 | 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 | 2012 — 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 | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| 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 | 5 / 7 | Cited 137 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 8.6 citations a year over 16 year(s) since 2012 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 7.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 21 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Bruno J. Vellas: h-index 60 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Inserm: institution h-index 1,988 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 22045479) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 48 / 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. 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
Soto, M. E., Secher, M., Gillette-Guyonnet, S., Abellan van Kan, G., Andrieu, S., Nourhashemi, F., et al. (2012). Weight loss and rapid cognitive decline in community-dwelling patients with Alzheimer's disease. Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD. https://doi.org/10.3233/jad-2011-110713
Vancouver
Soto ME, Secher M, Gillette-Guyonnet S, Abellan van Kan G, Andrieu S, Nourhashemi F, et al. Weight loss and rapid cognitive decline in community-dwelling patients with Alzheimer's disease. Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD. 2012. doi:10.3233/jad-2011-110713. PMID: 22045479.
BibTeX
@article{soto2012-22045479,
author = {Soto, M. E. and Secher, M. and Gillette-Guyonnet, S. and Abellan van Kan, G. and Andrieu, S. and Nourhashemi, F. and Rolland, Y. and Vellas, B.},
title = {{Weight loss and rapid cognitive decline in community-dwelling patients with Alzheimer's disease}},
journal = {Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.3233/jad-2011-110713},
pmid = {22045479},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3233/jad-2011-110713}
}
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