Each study has a usefulness score out of 100 (rubric version 4.0). Tap a score to see what makes it up.
Highest usefulness score first. Studies without a score come last.
-
In this Delphi survey study, international experts reached consensus on a range of criteria for referral to specialist palliative care.
Why it matters
This survey asked experts to agree on which dementia patients should be referred to specialist palliative care and when. It does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention, so it cannot show whether palliative care changes disease outcomes.
-
This study presents findings from IDEA Café, for older adults aged 50 and older living with early dementia, dementia, Alzheimer’s Disease or cognitive impairment (ED/CI) with no informal caregiver or care partner.
Why it matters
This pilot randomized trial found that the IDEA Café intervention was feasible and acceptable, and showed improvements in physical functioning, depressive symptoms, quality of life, and reductions in microaggressions and social exclusion. A future randomized controlled trial is needed to test efficacy and sustainability.
-
56/100
ADNI participants (921 dyads) had a mean (SD) age of 71 (7) years and mean (SD) of 17 (3) years of education; 485 (53%) were female, 30 (3%) were Asian, 105 (11%) were Black, and 756 (82%) were White. eVAL participants (279 dyads) had a mean (SD) age of 71 (8) years and mean (SD) of 17 (2) years of education; 151 (54%) were female, 17 (6%) were Asian, 12 (4%) were Black, and 245 (88%) were White.
Why it matters
Measures of discordance between self-reported and informant-reported cognitive decline helped distinguish cognitively unimpaired people from those with mild cognitive impairment, with high specificity but low sensitivity. This is a cross-sectional diagnostic aid and does not test any treatment, cure or prevention.
-
Totally 7499 participants were included in the analysis, representing 40,728,543 community-living older Americans.
Why it matters
This longitudinal study found that community-living older Americans in disadvantaged counties had higher five-year incidence of frailty, probable dementia and ADL disability than those in non-disadvantaged counties. It highlights the role of county-level social disadvantage, but it does not test a dementia treatment or cure.
-
Over recent decades, Brazil has amassed a wealth of knowledge regarding the potential effects of climate change on its biodiversity.
Why it matters
This systematic review projected climate change impacts on biodiversity in Brazil and estimated that Paris Agreement adherence could reduce impacts by 20%. It contains no information relevant to Alzheimer's disease.
-
Symptomatic females with genetic FTD had lower frontal cortical thickness than males, and the C9orf72 subgroup showed lower-than-expected frontal cortical thickness for a given level of executive functioning.
Why it matters
This longitudinal study found that females with genetic FTD had higher cognitive reserve than males, but this advantage declined as the disease progressed. It suggests that self-reported sex may influence resilience to frontotemporal neurodegeneration, which could inform future research but does not yet provide a treatment or cure.
-
Central nervous system (CNS)-active medication use is common in older adults; however, there are limited data on utilization trends over time, differences in utilization amongst those with and without dementia, and modification of utilization surrounding dementia diagnosis.
Why it matters
This study found that central nervous system-active medication use is higher in older adults with dementia than in those without. It describes medication use patterns and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
-
During follow-up ranging from 1.0 to 22.9 years, 75 patients (29.88%) converted to AD.
Why it matters
This longitudinal study found that depression onset after age 75 was strongly associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease and a shorter time to dementia onset. It suggests that the mechanisms underlying Alzheimer's disease in people with depression may differ from those without prior depression, but it does not test any treatment or prevention.
-
Of 510 memory-clinic subjects(N = 155 cognitive decline), RetiPhenoAge associated with incident cognitive decline (subdistribution hazard ratio [SHR] 1.34, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.10-1.64, p = 0.004), and incident dementia (SHR 1.43, 95% CI 1.02-2.01, p = 0.036).
Why it matters
This study found that a deep-learning retinal aging biomarker, RetiPhenoAge, was associated with incident cognitive decline and dementia in a memory-clinic cohort and predicted incident dementia in the UK Biobank. It may provide a non-invasive prognostic screening tool, but future studies should validate it as a prognostic biomarker for dementia.
-
This is because of the ambiguity surrounding the terminology used to characterize reversible dementia—the variation in the population being studied, or the existence of subclinical instances that are difficult to diagnose.[3] By and large however, the proportion of reversible dementias compared to the irreversible dementias is very low.
Why it matters
This guideline discusses the low proportion of reversible dementias and the importance of prompt assessment and treatment of potentially reversible causes. It focuses on clinical management of treatable dementias, not on treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease itself.
-
The results indicate that incorporating MI can positively influence cognitive status, emotional status, and the quality of life in older adults diagnosed with early-stage dementia.
Why it matters
In this randomized trial of 160 people with early-stage Alzheimer's dementia, mental imagery improved cognitive status, emotional status, and quality of life compared with one control group. These are short-term benefits on symptoms and well-being, not evidence that mental imagery cures or prevents Alzheimer's disease.
-
Study findings will reveal the feasibility of delivering an 8-week multidomain health education intervention for primary prevention of dementia in midlife and will provide preliminary evidence of mechanisms of change.
Why it matters
This is a protocol for developing and pilot-testing an education program about dementia risk in midlife adults. No results are reported, so it cannot yet show any effect on preventing cognitive decline.
-
Such approaches will benefit also from improvements in remote data measurement, whether cognitive (e.g., online), or naturalistic (e.g., watch-based accelerometry).
Why it matters
This narrative review reports that machine learning approaches show improved predictive power compared to standard clinical risk scores in predicting dementia. It discusses prediction and digital health tools, not treatments or cures for Alzheimer's disease.
-
Vitality was associated with disability primarily through the mediation of other IC domains.
Why it matters
Among 1,389 older adults, higher vitality measured in three ways was linked to fewer difficulties with instrumental daily activities, mostly through effects on cognition, movement and psychological domains. This is about measuring vitality and disability, not about treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
-
The increasing number of people with dementia globally illustrates the urgent need to reduce dementia's scale and impact.
Why it matters
This review of observational studies found that greater social participation in midlife and late life was associated with 30-50% lower dementia risk, though some of this may not be causal. Social participation interventions improved cognition but, partly due to short follow-up and small numbers, did not reduce dementia risk.
-
56/100
Chronic musculoskeletal pain has been linked to dementia; however, chronic pain typically occurs in multiple sites; therefore, this study was to investigate whether greater number of chronic pain sites is associated with a higher risk of dementia and its subtypes.
Why it matters
This prospective cohort study of 356,383 UK Biobank participants investigated whether a greater number of chronic pain sites is associated with higher risk of dementia and its subtypes. It is observational, so it cannot prove that treating chronic pain would prevent dementia.
-
The results demonstrated that CCIs have beneficial effects on domain-specific cognition in people with MCI but no significant effects on people with dementia.
Why it matters
This review found that computer-based cognitive interventions significantly improved some specific cognitive domains in people with mild cognitive impairment, but found no significant improvements in global cognition or language, and no significant effects in people with dementia. It addresses cognitive training effects, not curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
-
Delirium is a complex neurocognitive syndrome suspected to be bidirectionally linked to dementia.
Why it matters
This study looked at whether disrupted 24-hour rest-activity rhythms in 53,417 UK Biobank participants were linked to delirium risk and progression to all-cause dementia. It is an observational analysis, so it cannot show that circadian rhythm disturbances cause dementia or that changing them would prevent it.
-
The sample included 2 619 464 patients (mean [SD] age, 81.3 [8.6] years; 61% women; 87% were White; 8% were Black; 22% with ADRD).
Why it matters
This study found that hospitalized patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias were less likely to be discharged to higher-quality skilled nursing facilities. It does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention, and it suggests targeted reforms may be needed to improve access to better facilities for these patients.
-
The most crucial elements for the adoption of ATT in the future will be a focus on co-design, improved involvement of relevant stakeholders, and the adaptability (tailoring related to context) of ATT solutions over time (disease process).
Why it matters
This systematic review identified promotors and barriers to the implementation and adoption of assistive technology and telecare for people with dementia and their caregivers. It included thirty studies of qualitative, mixed-method, and quantitative design.
-
Perivascular spaces (PVS) visible on MRI scans may represent key aspects in the pathophysiology of stroke and dementia, including cerebral small vessel disease and glymphatic dysfunction.
Why it matters
This study examined whether perivascular spaces visible on MRI are associated with the risk of incident dementia. It does not show that any treatment or prevention targeting these spaces works.
-
A meta-analysis using a random-effects model was performed to calculate the pooled standardized mean differences between overall symptoms and each type of symptom.
Why it matters
This systematic review and meta-analysis of 16 trials found that non-pharmacological interventions using information and communication technologies had a large effect on depression and a moderate effect on overall behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. This is about managing symptoms in people with dementia and does not show a treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
-
From 1990 to 2019, the Alzheimer's disease burden increased worldwide.
Why it matters
Using the 2019 Global Burden of Disease database, this study reports that incidence and prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias rose by 147.95% and 160.84% between 1990 and 2019, and that age-standardised rates of new cases, existing cases, deaths and DALYs also rose in both men and women. Rates were consistently higher in women but rose faster in men, and they were higher in more socially developed countries (higher SDI). It describes trends and associations in existing data; it does not test any treatment, care approach or prevention, and its smoking and obesity risk-factor findings are not evidence that changing them prevents dementia.
-
Between May 28, 2015, and Jan 10, 2018, 502 individuals were assessed as part of Insight 46.
Why it matters
In this birth cohort, a higher brain-predicted age difference was associated with cardiovascular risk, cerebrovascular disease burden, lower cognitive performance, and future hippocampal atrophy. These are associations with brain aging markers and do not show that any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease works.
-
Among non-Latino Whites, ADI was associated with dementia incidence (most vs. least disadvantaged ADI quintile HR = 1.09, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02-1.15).
Why it matters
Among non-Latino White older adults, living in a more disadvantaged neighborhood was linked to a slightly higher rate of dementia, while among Asian Americans the link was close to none. The reasons for these different patterns are not yet understood.
From across this topic
10 of the 7,967 studies in this topic, picked by a fixed rule (a hash of each study's address), not by score or date; each page of this list shows a different 10. The same 10 appear here every time.
- The Integration of Lifestyle Modification Advice and Diet and Physical Exercise Interventions: Cornerstones in the Management of Obesity with Incretin Mimetics
- The deprivation cascade hypothesis of dementia
- Association of Cerebral Microbleeds With Cognitive Decline and Dementia
- The lived experience of family caregivers who provided end-of-life care to persons with advanced dementia
- Alcohol use and risk of dementia in diverse populations: evidence from cohort, case-control and Mendelian randomisation approaches
- Long-term consequences: effects on normal development profile after concussion
- Gender differences in caregiving among family - caregivers of people with mental illnesses
- Rural-Urban Differences in Preventable Hospitalizations Among Community-Dwelling Veterans With Dementia
- Neuroimaging and Machine Learning for Dementia Diagnosis: Recent Advancements and Future Prospects
- Associations of Cardiovascular‐Kidney‐Metabolic Syndrome with Psychiatric Disorders and Dementia in Midlife and Older adults in the UK Biobank